Curse of Ursus
by xeveningx
Summary: Ayano finds herself away again; this time to restore the darkness missing in both her and Haruka. This takes her far and wide where memories build a bridge to a solution. But that bridge is burning and fast. The far past clashes with the present and it threatens to vanish her. This is a game of trust where a liar should excel but she's rusty. Now it's anybody's game.
1. Memoir I: The Beginning

**To Antex: Thank you for letting your precious child play in my playground with my own little devils. I'll treat him with as much care as I do my own. And thank you for caring about this installment as a whole and myself more than anyone** _ **.**_

* * *

 **Memoir I:  
** _The Beginning_

* * *

 _Wind's in the East_

 _Mist coming in_

 _Like something is brewing about to begin_

 _Can't put my finger_

 _On what lies in store_

 _But I feel what's to happen all happened before_

* * *

Everything hurts.

My lungs burn each time I take a breath and my muscles hurt from running. But I can't stop. If I do that _thing_ will catch me and shred me to pieces. The brightness of the town blinded me for a second when I turn the corner but I can't afford to stop. Not with the screeching still chasing after me.

Turning another corner, I slip on my own feet but manage to grab onto the wall to balance myself before quickly running inside the narrow alleyway. It takes me a few seconds to get in there but I manage to squeeze in and turn my head towards the exit. My breathing heavy, it's hard to keep quiet but I need to hear where it is. After a few seconds of silence, worry creeps into me.

Silence is never a good thing.

Then I hear it again, knives—sharp and deadly as could be—scraping loudly against the asphalt streets. The screech that the metal makes against the floor was nerve-racking. Dragging itself painfully slow making that hellish noise that's driving me crazy. That _thing—_ it's mocking me. Playing with me; it's prey. It's as if it gets a thrill out of the hunt.

A vicious creature; it's only purpose is to devour that which has come in contact with the darkness from that _abyss_ to absorb its powers and evolve.

 _"You and those so called_ rescuers _are all targets now. The same fate from before will repeat, and this time..._ I'll _finish what_ you _started."_

The loudness of the crash right beside me makes me scream my lungs out. The claws that were silent seconds ago reach in through the narrow gap towards me and graze my arm enough to make it bleed but not enough to actually grab onto me. Moving back while holding my arm, I watch as the dark hand furiously claws against the brick wall trying to draw me—the mouse trapped in the corner—out.

Fear, right now, is a huge understatement. At this rate, I'll be scared to death before it even catches me. How in the worlds did he even create something so horrifyingly inhuman?

* * *

 _Days Before_

* * *

"So?" My voice raises a bit when I throw my arm towards the building's general direction. "What do you think?"

Beside me, Haruka only cringes while tilting his head to the side. He stares at it for a moment before heaving a sigh. "It's taking too long. Don't you think?"

"Well..." Standing there, we both contemplate the current situation that we find ourselves in. Before us was the house of one of the residents in Ostown, half painted in bright colors while the rest remained in the nasty hue of grays and whites.

There really is no arguing with the kid. After all, helping restore Wasteland is a heavy duty job. Especially since we're also helping out with restoring Radiant Garden. Thankfully, the guys from the Restoration Committee let me borrow Haru to help me out with what Os had tasked me to do.

Since the bunny was busy trying to restore order first on the other places connected to OsTown, he asked me to continue the painting restoration here. And I thought it wouldn't be that hard until he told me I couldn't use that nifty little magic brush of his.

At the thought, I snap my fingers and a huge grin comes to me. I turn to face Haruka who's already facing me, perplexed at my look. "What?" he voiced a little nervous.

"I know what we can use to speed it up."

Without wasting a second, I drag Haruka across town towards Os' home. It's technically mine so the fact that we're sneaking in is completely irrelevent but, hey, we're having some fun here.

"Are you going to tell me what we're doing here?"

"We're just going to borrow some tools." That's what I give him as an answer all the while we tiptoe our way through the wood halls of the house. He keeps blabbering about how this is stupid and whatnot all the way to Os' workshop. Unlike mine, his has more stuff and is bigger and also has stored most of his personal gadgets. Including the one jammed inside a glass case for safekeeping.

Haruka and I stand before the one thing that had caused a havoc years ago in this town. As always, he was the one to ask the obvious. "What's this?"

"Something that will help us," I tell him and slowly take the lid off the case and carefully pull out the paintbrush.

"A paintbrush?"

"Obviously."

"We have a ton back in town. What's so special about this one?" He's incredulous and I don't blame him. I'd be too if I didn't know what this beauty could do. But he didn't, and boy was he missing out.

"Come, young one—" I say while twirling the brush between my fingers— "and I shall teach you."

Minutes later, we're back in OsTown; Haruka with a tiresome look and I with a look of excitement. "Are you going to tell me or not?"

 _Well, isn't he the impatient one?_

"Patience is a virtue," I remind him while sticking the brush in one of the buckets of paint. It slightly glows inside it but it doesn't seem Haruka saw it.

"That I don't have," he retorted back with a heavy sigh.

"All right." Getting up straight, I hold the brush up high to show him my best. "Ready for this?"

"Amaze me."

 _Oh, I will._

Without any further ado, I gracefully spin it in my hand before giving it a stroke towards the house. Just like magic, the paint jumps from the brush and splotches towards the house. Where the paint falls, the whole thing starts to gain color and not just the one that I had dipped the thing in. It's painting it in all kinds of vibrant hues matching those that we had already painted beforehand.

When I turn towards him, all I see on Haruka's face is a twinge of wonder before his expression grows even more in amazement, eyes glowing brightly. Giving it another slight flick, I finish painting the other half of the house that would have taken us hours to paint normally. Yeah, this is much better.

Smirking and passing the paintbrush to him, I say, "Care to try?"

Hours pass by and we enjoy them with ease while painting the rest of the neighborhood and taking turns using the paintbrush. Haruka and I are having a blast like nobody's business and I'm loving every second of it. It isn't until he goes over his time that I start to get peeved.

"You've gone twenty minutes overboard, Haru. Hand it over."

"Give me another five!" he calls while trying to keep the brush away from my reach.

"I've given you four of those already!"

Finally, I manage to catch it in my grasp but he isn't about to let go of it either. We struggle pulling the brush from one another, back and forth. But, of course, me being the stronger one between the two, I end up pulling it away from him. "Ha!" I exclaim triumphantly putting the paintbrush out of his reach. He quickly tries jumping to get it but my hand finds his face to push him back. "Too slow, bud."

"What's the meaning of this?"

The voice makes both of us turn and I'm sure we both cringe at seeing Oswald standing there with his arms crossed, his foot tapping on the floor and giving us that mean glare that I hadn't seen in a while.

And although I missed it, it was better not to be on the receiving side of it. Without remorse, I give Haruka a push back and toss the brush his way at the same time. He struggles to catch it but once he does he's the one in the receiving end and that makes him stutter in search for a good excuse.

Before he can even speak, though, a squeaky chuckle gets all of our attention. "Gosh, reminds me of how I picked that brush once." Our eyes turn towards the one behind Oswald and see His Majesty, King Mickey, chuckling still. "But maybe giving it back is your best bet." Haruka and I laugh with him for a bit before I pat Os' head and Haruka gives him the brush.

"Geez," he grumps on, swatting my hand away from his head. "What will I ever do with you two?"

"Love us, of course!" I exclaim happily and grab onto Haru by his neck, bringing him close to hug him and place my chin atop his head. His laughter reaches my ears above his complaints and so does Os' and Mickey's. Standing back up, I turn towards his mousedom. "So, what brings you to this side of the woods, Your Majesty?"

"It's about your check-ups."

A frown comes to my lips at the grim reminder. He's referring to the examinations that Oswald began to do on Haruka and I ever since our last journey ended. The day of my return I told him everything that had happened; it was a story that took most of the night and into the next morning to tell but it was told in the end. And from it, he knew that Haruka and I were alike and what was happening to us.

Ever since I vanquished Hotaru I have remained without a darkness, and according to Rinto—the Snake that is my eye abilities—making another is extremely hard. Darkness manifests from dark emotions. Something that I haven't had ever since I met Sora. Since the fateful meeting with that boy and his friends, my life has changed for the better and I don't ever want to go back to the dark place I was before. Even if that meant that I would leave the worlds sooner than I'm supposed to.

But that's a decision I haven't voiced as of yet. And because I haven't, Oswald and Yen Sid became adamant about finding a way to restore the parts of the balance that Haruka and I are missing. Until that's possible, they monitor our status every day to make sure nothing becomes worse too fast. These past couple of weeks it's been mostly Oswald doing them, sometimes even having a consult with Yen Sid.

But they've never involved Mickey before which meant something is up. And that can't possibly be any good.

"What about them?" Haruka asks, voicing my question.

"You're going to the Mysterious Tower for your check up," Oswald replies with a tap of the brush on my elbow.

"How come?" Their stares take me by surprise but I quickly retort. "You're already checking up on us. So is Merlin when Haruka is with him at Radiant Garden. Haruka's hasn't progressed since he doesn't use his powers as much. Mine hasn't progressed either since I can control it now. So what gives?"

"It'll be better to ask those questions when we get there."

Haruka furrows his brow at hearing Mickey say this. "We're leaving? Now?"

"It's somewhat of a trip from Wasteland. If you leave now, you'll get there by the morning."

My eyes never leave the rabbit's as he says this and for a good reason. He's a lousy liar. If anybody knew about lying it's me which meant that he's hiding something and it's blatant.

This isn't about Haruka. If anything the kid is as healthy as a horse. So that only left me as their prime concern.

And it makes sense, too. Last time he checked me, there was this look on Os' face that I couldn't quite place. If anybody would need an extra look-up, it had to be me.

Then...why take Haruka?

"You two will be okay."

"Huh?" We had been walking towards the Gummi Ship in which Mickey had come in. Haruka was way ahead of us with the King; I stayed behind with Oswald. But it had been his sudden outburst that had taken my attention. "What's wrong, bunny?"

He glares at me, his cheeks puffed, but he lets out everything with a sigh. His ears droop to his sides in obvious concern, belying the sentence that follows. "Don't go worrying yourself. It's just routine."

"Haven't had this happen before. So it's not just routine." My eyes turn towards him and he just averts his gaze. Yeah, he's trying to hide something from me. But beating it out of him won't do. He's too stubborn and that's where I learned it from. "But you're right." This time his eyes come to me and I only grin at him. "No use in worrying. We'll find a way to make this better. So no sweat." Taking a step forward and starting to walk away, I turn with a smile. "Don't worry, Papa. I'll be as fit as a fiddle when we're back."

He hesitates for a second but then a smile comes to him too. "Yeah. I know you will."

I want to tell him the truth but that would be counterproductive. So...I lied to him. At least, now I know what's a lie and what's true. I don't want him to worry...but I don't know if there's a way to cure us.

To cure me.

* * *

Mickey watched the siblings closely as they looked outside through the Gummi Ship's window. They joke and horse around but he can see that they're as close can be.

"Your Majesty?" Donald spoke above the roar of the ship. "Something wrong?"

"No, nothing."

"Ahyuk, Ayano and Haruka seem okay. Master Yen Sid must be worried if he asked for them, though," Goofy commented touching some of the controls.

"Don't touch that!" Donald squawked slapping the other's hand.

"Yeah. We all are," Mickey assured them and looked over at the two again. Ayano was telling something to Haruka as he paid attention to the outside, watching stars and meteorites passing by.

When Mickey saw them, he saw himself and Oswald. Both torn apart and reunited. And yet he couldn't keep at bay the worry in him. And it was because he actually knew why Yen Sid had called for them.

"King Mickey! Look!" Haruka's call brought him out of the train of thought that he was in. Both siblings had their faces plastered against the glass pane.

"Looks like we're here," Ayano added leaning back on her chair and letting the mouse take a look. Sure enough, there on the distance, they could see the isle of the Mysterious Tower.

* * *

"You brought us here for a normal check-up?"

Haruka's voice couldn't have been higher, or in more disbelief, had he tried. Of course, he's upset. They basically brought him out here for a routine that could have been done at Wasteland. "We're in the middle of reconstructing two worlds. We really don't have time to come visit around for tea."

"Calm your horses, bud." My hand on his shoulder calms his mounting anger and instead he glares at me. "They won't go anywhere." This doesn't convince him much. "We might." That does because his shoulders instantly relax under my hold. This gives me enough leeway to nod my head towards Mickey and Yen Sid who overheard me over Haru's exclaim.

"Now, Haruka, please follow the good fairies. They will be in charge of you." The old man motions his hands towards one of the doors in his study that leads to the fairies' room.

"C'mon, Haru. Be a good boy," Donald calls out walking ahead of him.

"Yep, let's go!" Goofy replies and grabs Haruka by the shoulders to take him away. Haru briefly glances over his shoulder to me and I only give him a reassuring smile and wave before he disappears behind the door.

Turning back to Mickey and Yen Sid, I look at the door that they're motioning to. No words needed, I follow behind them and close the door as I'm the last to enter.

"Now," the old man says and brings a couple of chairs over with his magic for me and the little king. "If you will."

I take a sit and like they had said, they put me through a normal checkup. Like it had been the past couple of weeks, the process is lengthy. They check my powers and how much mastery I've still got with them. Nothing much has changed just because I can control them now. I still have my arsenal of masks that allow me to fake emotions and I can still mimic and hide myself from others. Not only that but I'm still able to climb shadows and I have Ares, my multi-use staff, with me. It's a hefty weapon and I already discovered all its mechanisms so it's good to have.

"And what about your snake?" Yen Sid asks after that part is over.

An eyebrow raised, I shake off the snarky comment that wants to come out of me; I don't question him. Instead I raise my left palm and call her name, "Rinto."

The warmth that rests upon my chest—along with a tattoo of a snake—begins to move across my body and crawls towards my palm. It tickles but I stay put until the black ink pools inside it. A drop jumps up and trickles down before it becomes the little snake's form—a girl with long black wavy hair and bright red eyes.

"Yes, Master?"

"What's the status check on my body?"

She stares at nothing for a brief second before answering me. "Your bodily functions are as normal as can be expected. No injuries or internal bleedings since the harsh battles ended. Only rebounds from time to time from usage of power."

That last part makes me cringe.

"You've used them?" Mickey questions. _Oops._

My hand comes up behind my neck as Rinto disappears and scratches it while a nervous chuckle escapes me. "Force of habit."

"One you should wean out of," Yen Sid reminds me.

"Habits die hard. Especially one I've used my whole life. Give me credit here; I've only used it a handful of times." But by now, I have an inkling about what's going on. "Now, will you tell me what is so important that you needed to separate Haruka and I?"

The old man stays quiet until his eyes come up to meet mine. His hand reaches out towards me. "Your arms." Unconsciously, my right hand grabs my left wrist. But instead of resisting, I heave a sigh before reaching to take my jacket off. When I do all that I have on is my tank top that leaves my arms and part of my upper back bare to the eye.

Grabbing the tie in my pocket, I put my hair up in a ponytail to give them a good look at the markings that spread across the top of my body. First they check how far my weakening body is being affected by any darkness and my own rebounds. Since I became able to control my powers, the dark markings on my body haven't spread except for a few centimeters here and there. But the marks already traveled a considerable distance since they're now already all over my back and up to my shoulders and both my wrists. The only consistent thing was my snake tattoo just above my heart.

"Gosh, it's even further than it was two weeks ago," Mickey comments, grabbing my wrists and turning my arms over a bit. The marks weren't random either. It's like they're making some sort of pattern all over my body.

"Oswald never said anything about these."

"I hid them from him." There was no use in lying to them. It's just that I didn't want to worry Os more than he already was. "I didn't—"

"Your concern is obvious, child. But he should know."

"He'll just worry over something he can't change." Hurrying to put my jacket back on, I go on with the explanation. "They appeared the night after I returned. While I slept, I dreamt of the fight I had against Hotaru and how she stopped our union. When I woke up it was with a burning pain throughout my body and the marks as you see them now."

Yen Sid nods understanding but the quizzical expression comes back to him again. "The darkness seems to be eating you far faster than we initially expected."

"Could it be from years of using her powers?" Mickey suggests clearly worried on my behalf.

"Most probably," Yen Sid tells us. "But now that Hotaru is no longer an option, we must search elsewhere for a cure to your ailment. You should consider birthing a new darkness in you to bring forth balance."

"I've given that a thought but I'm bound to say no." The looks they give me are expected, so I just continue with my explanation. "Rinto's explained to me what it entails. I would need a very strong, negative emotion to birth the darkness necessary to balance against the light I've got now. Those dark emotions...I don't think myself strong enough to birth them and not be lost to their pull."

"We are aware of that," Yen Sid adds. "Which is why we've decided to approach it differently." My eyes turn up to them and that's when they see it fit to answer me. "This approach will concern Haru—"

"Leave him out of this."

My answer is crisp, short, and to the point. The burning sensation on my eyes is unmistakable.

"W-Wait!" Mickey's quick interference makes me turn towards him. The moment my eyes land on him and he flinches, I'm assured of what I feel. My eyes activated on their own. The rage—it's great fuel to my powers but also a big foe to me. "We don't mean to put him in harm's way. I assure you of that."

"I don't care."

"He's the only key we have that could guide us to a cure. More specifically, the emotions that his mere mention ignite in you."

Yen Sid's mention of the steadily raising anger in me makes me take a deep breath.

" _Count to ten,"_ Rinto reminds me, " _then let it out."_

Following her advice about how to deactivate my powers, I close my eyes and take another deep breath, counting to ten then letting it go. At opening my eyes, the burning sensation is gone.

"I'll...hear you out. Not because I agree, though."

Mickey thanks me for my consideration but I assure him it's not that. Yen Sid nods alongside him, understanding my position before he starts explaining. "From what I was informed, there seems to be a strong connection between you and the young girl that was Ansem the Wise's daughter; not a clear one, however. Is this correct?"

"Yeah, so?" If I sound impatient, it's because I am. Talking about something I already know is not something I wanted to hear now. I know that the Ayano known as Ansem's daughter and I had some sort of connection.

Otherwise, I wouldn't have had seen pieces of her memories during our last journey.

And I wouldn't have known that Ayano was Haruka's foster older sister.

Yen Sid nods quickly, I suppose to keep my temper from running rampant from impatience. "That connection is what we aim to pursue. If in them lies an inkling that could help, it would be safe to assume they are locked away inside of you since you have seen them before."

"Those were random coincidences, though," I tell them.

"Nothing's left to chance." This time it's Mickey that answers me. His expression shows his determination and he seems to know the answer. "Oswald told me what you said; those latent memories had been awakened through connections from Haruka."

He wasn't wrong. I did tell Oswald about the memories that I saw that weren't mine. And that it had been Hibiki, Echo, and that strange boy's phantom who guided me to them. Still couldn't figure why they did it or how they knew where Haruka's memories were but...I had my guesses. They were only that, though, assumptions. And people say some bad things about assuming.

"I suppose that's how I got ahold of the memories but it still doesn't explain what's that got to do with getting a darkness for me."

"Dormant memories hold a darkness of their own. Memories of a forgotten person even more so." Yen Sid's explanation is making less sense by the second but I try to follow. "It may prove difficult to find and obtain access to them, however, because of how long they have remained in slumber. That's where Haruka comes into play."

It begins to click in then. "He's the only one directly connected to her..."

"And his memories of her would be able to guide you towards others and possibly to one strong enough to gain a darkness from."

"A dark emotion," I mumble under my breath, understanding now what he meant. If I can get my hands on a darkness that's not mine, then it wouldn't affect me mentally as much as my own would. And it could very well save my life. "And how are you planning on doing that?"

Yen Sid walks over to one of the pieces of furniture in the room covered in white sheets and rips one off a large full body mirror. "This will help."

"A mirror?"

"A portal!" Mickey calls pointing at the engravings atop the frame. "But...I thought those had been destroyed."

"This one was salvaged from the many that were." Yen Sid turns from Mickey to me and touches the pane of glass that glows a bright blue at his touch. "This magic mirror, as Mickey said, is a portal. One that if given a specific source can find others like it, no matter where or when they exist."

"A portal? I'm guessing it can guide me through the dormant memories then. But first we'd need a starter one, like you said," I say out loud while touching the pane of glass like he did but see nothing happen. "A memory of Haruka and Ansem's daughter would start it up and lead me towards others."

"That's the plan," Mickey concluded.

"I still refuse." This dashes their hopes faster than I thought but I have my reason.

"But it concerns your life—"

"Which matters much less to me than Haruka's." When they don't say anything, I continue. "He's started showing some signs of deterioration."

"In the early stages, child," Yen Sid says trying to change my mind. "You're reaching the last."

My mouth is half open and my voice halfway through my throat when Mickey quickly intervenes. "You two—you and Haruka look very happy together. He would be devastated if you were to disappear, Ayano. We all would be. You're our friend, too."

This shuts me up instantly. He's right. I've seen Haruka cry before because of me. Because he's scared of losing me. And frankly, despite how much I might want to deny it, I don't want to vanish.

"Could this search...also help Haruka?"

"It could very well aid both of you, yes. If the right memory is found it could save more than one."

Yen Sid's reassurance is minimal but it suffices. "Fine. I'll do it but—" they stop in their nodding when I add that. "Only if Haruka allows me to. I won't go rummaging through his memories if he doesn't want me to."

"If he's like us, he won't say no," Mickey assures me.

"We'll begin, then, once you have talked." Yen Sid turns to his disciple and nods at him before coming back to me. "And once Mickey's returned."

"You're going off?"

"Yep," Mickey answers with a smile. "Some friends to go back for. I'll be back by the time you're done discussing it."

I take that for what it is. Yen Sid tells me that the fairies should be done with Haruka by now when we get out of the mirror room. Just as he said, the fairies are out, as well as Donald and Goofy. Seems wherever Mickey went, he went alone.

Leaving that be for now, I head to the room where they had led Haruka to and stand just outside the door. Knocking a couple of times, I wait for his answer before coming in. He's buttoning his vest by then and looks up at me as I enter.

"How are you?" he asks right away. Always the impatient one.

"Same old, same old," I reply with a shrug of my shoulders. "And you?"

"The scarring's starting on the nape of my neck." He cringes a bit and rubs said spot unconsciously. "But it's been a while since it moved. The fairies said that it was good."

"That's great." My tone belies my honest relief for him and he instantly notices this.

"Something up?"

I open my mouth but decide it's better to tell him this while sitting down so we do just that and sit on the bed that they had used to examine him. "Yen Sid and Mickey...seemed to have found a way of searching for darkness we could use."

"Really?"

His enthusiasm kills me because of what I'm about to ask. "But—how do I say this? —it concerns the memories of Ayano...your sister."

"…what about her?"

"The memories that I found had been asleep. And memories like those, they possess a darkness of their own that keeps them there. If I can find these memories, then maybe I could find an emotion dark enough to replace both our dark halves."

"But...?"

He's reading right along the lines. He's known me for so little yet knows me so well. "We need a memory to start from. One that's connected to her and that will lead me towards others that lie sleeping."

"You need...one of my memories?"

"From your past," I clarify. "Before we met. Before you forgot."

"I'll do it."

That...was quick. Much too quick. "A-Are you sure? I mean, the thing could be dangerous and like hell am I going to allow—"

"But it's to help you, right? If it's to help you, Aya-nee, then I'll do it."

Those words bring a smile to my face without me noticing. Bringing out my arm, I bring him close to hug him. "Thank you, Haru."

"I just want to know how we can make sure that you're okay inside those memories?"

A grin comes to my lips before my hand reaches up to the necklace around his neck, my fingers touching the light blue pearls on his necklace and brushing over the tear-shaped ruby on his other. "So long as you see this shine, you can be sure that I'm out there, somewhere, and that I won't stop until we're together again."

He looks down briefly before lifting his head up and nodding. Haruka then throws himself against me once more. "I'll be waiting then." I assure him of my return before we hear voices outside that grow louder. He pulls away and jumps out of the bed before turning to me.

"L-Let's tell Master Yen Sid and the King," Haruka says and opens the door just enough. He dashes out of the door leaving it slightly ajar. That kid really never ceases to amaze me; he's much stronger than I give him credit for. I've got to start getting used to that.

Getting up myself, I go towards the same door and open it to walk out without paying much attention. That costs me because I instantly bump into someone in my way.

"Whoa, there."

At hearing that voice, my eyes snap upward to meet a pair of aquamarine eyes that stare into my hazel ones. Not only that but behind said person I find another pair, these a much bluer color.

"Ayano!" Sora calls out with a grin brighter than the sun.

"You okay, Aya?" Riku asks, blinking at seeing my wide eyes.

Ah, great.

"Sora. Riku," Haruka exclaims coming closer with a wide smile on his face. He comes from around me to say hello to the two. "What are you doing here?"

"Got a message from King Mickey." Sora thumbs behind him at the little majesty that walked after them into the room. "But...we don't really know why, either?"

"I'm surprised to see you both here as well," Riku adds. "Is everything all right?"

"Perfect." My forefinger and thumb come together, the rest sprung outward to sign out what I said. Feeling somewhat odd about meeting them here when I have other issues to take care of, I turn my back on them to look at Yen Sid and Mickey as he joins the old man behind his desk. "The kid has spoken. We're going through with this."

Yen Sid acknowledges this with a languid nod. "Let us brief Sora and Riku as to the reason for their arrival, first. The two of you would do well to listen as well."

One of my brows raises, incredulous. "But your business is with them. Why should Haru and I stay to listen?"

"It is likely that where you are headed could very likely align to their destination as well," he explains, somberly. "Although difficult to predict, it would be wise of you to go in prepared."

My finger comes to tap at my chin for a few seconds before I shrug my shoulders. Although I wanted this to be over with fast, even if I didn't end up where they would go, it wouldn't hurt to be prepared like he said. Tapping Haruka's shoulder, I lead him up to the moon- and star-shaped windows that stand behind the old man's sit. I take a sit on the ridge of the moon and lay back, my body curving into it. Haruka finds a good sit on an edge of the star.

"All right, old man," I tell him as I reach for my hood and pull it over my eyes while placing my hands over my chest to rest. "I'm all ears."

I hear a few chuckles and it makes me smirk. Regrettably, Yen Sid doesn't seem to catch my joke but continues either way. He starts straight to the point: the man known as Master Xehanort. As I listen in, I start to put facts together. Some I had already heard from Oswald. After I returned, he made it a point to keep no more secrets from me and I reciprocated in kind. There would be no secrets in my family. The few things Yen Sid tells Sora and Riku, I knew. And because Haruka is no exception to that rule, I told him everything I had in my little head as well.

The few weeks we've had together were quite productive. Because of my fear that I might disappear without any given notice, I took the time I needed to tell Haruka, Ortensia, and Oswald of what happened to me during the past two years.

My journey out of home. Meeting Maleficent and working with Riku under her. My first encounter with Hotaru, the dark side of myself that I had destroyed not long ago. My first encounters with Sora, Donald, and Goofy and how meeting them was the best thing that could've happened to me. I told them about Hibiki and Echo. My time in the Organization; things about Axel and about Roxas. The destruction of the organization from within and my own downfall as I worked with Ansem the Wise who I knew as DiZ back then. And finally my helping Sora through his last journey until my current point in time.

It took a few hours, probably a whole day that I didn't noticed pass, but I told everything. None of them rejected my words. They took them in and trusted me fully. And now that I can tell the truth, it's what I'm for. Always.

So this are no news for Haruka and I. What struck me as new was that he's putting the two boys through the Mark of Mastery Exam. He wanted them to forget everything they knew and start from scratch.

I scoff when everybody else reacted to that. Even Riku's self-doubt isn't any surprise. Neither is Sora's enthusiasm. The few things that I listen to are about those 'individuals' that Mickey told the two about in some letter. I had no knowledge of that. It did make me wonder about who they spoke off. But I shove that aside as he begins to explain about the Sleeping Worlds—worlds cut off from outside channels still locked in darkness—and about the dark and light beings that dwell in them: Dream Eaters. The Nightmares that eat happy dreams and Spirits that consume Nightmares. For this, I actually sit up and glance over their shoulders to see the small creatures, images he had summoned as example.

Before I can comment on it, he changes the subject, this time to an event he calls the Keyblade War. It sounded much like a fairytale from a storybook. But because I knew better, it gave it a tinge of reality. He talks about Kingdom Hearts and the counterpart that protected it, the X-blade, and goes from there. The world had been taken over by those who wanted to take the light for themselves which brought upon the world the first shadows. They made 'Keyblades' in the X-blade's shape and waged the infamous war over Kingdom Hearts. The rest of the story, I knew of from Oswald's old bedtime stories.

What I don't know is how the X-blade had split into twenty pieces: seven of light and thirteen of darkness. Odd, numbers. I chuckle to myself at the stupid joke but sober up when I hear how Kingdom Hearts disappeared and what the outcomes of such decisions brought upon those who were left in the world after it was brought back together by the light in children's heart.

But story time is quickly over and with it my time to rest. From the corner of my eye, I see Yen Sid as he stands and turns to face me. "Now that this has been dealt with, it is time to send you on your way."

Nodding, I get up as Haruka gets to my side. Sora and Riku eye us, perplexed, and of course spiky head can't keep his thoughts to himself. "Sending her off? Where are you going, Aya?"

 _Don't say it._

For once I listen to myself. I wink at them and smile. "Well, that's for me to know and for you to find out."

"Ayano." I turn to look at Riku who frowns slightly. Without even saying the rest, I know exactly what he's saying: don't put us in the dark like that. But I have to. This isn't a problem they can help with. It's something only Haruka and I have; what's worse is that, right now, I'm the only one who can do anything about it.

"Don't worry," I assure the two of them. "It's nothing bad. Relatively speaking."

Riku's frown deepens and Sora's brow starts to furrow but it disappears before he gives me a small smile. It's full of concern but also of trust, and it makes me feel slightly guilty. "Whatever it is, I'm sure you've got it. So, we'll see you when we're done, too."

That makes me smile, sincerely this time. I raise my fist up to him. "As Masters, I'm hoping."

This time he grins and bumps his fist against mine. "You bet."

We grin like idiots before Mickey ushers them out to prepare for their exams. Just the same, Yen Sid tells us that our preparation room is with the fairies in the mirror room.

Haruka and I enter the room but before they even start doing anything, Haruka goes off to look through the messenger bag he brought with him. As I look around the room, I can tell the fairies have been busy accommodating things for us. Across from the mirror is a bed, not big but large enough for someone like Haruka. I'm caught staring at it when he comes back.

He catches me off guard when I turn around to meet him because instead of his eyes all I see is a box in front of his face. I blink a few times before he brings it down to face me if you can call what he's doing "looking." Haruka keeps averting his emerald gaze, his cheeks dusted a bit pink from what I assume is embarrassment. Before I can open my mouth and ask anything, he shoves the box into my arms and makes me hold onto it.

"Open it."

Having no idea why to argue seeing as I am curious, I set it down on the bed and open the small box. Inside is a black and gold hair ribbon and attached to it a star of gold with crystal spheres at the center.

"What...is this?" I ask, dumbfounded, as I hold the small hairpiece in my hand. It's so small it fits perfectly in my palm.

"I made it..." A frown comes to me out of confusion and I turn to the boy in front of me as he wrings the hem of his blue vest and averts his eyes. Finally, he gazes at me from underneath his lashes. "I wanted to give it to you on your birthday. Oswald told me; it's only a few months away, right? But since you're leaving, I thought to give it now."

A smile comes to me. "Thank you," I say sincerely. "That's really sweet of you, Haruka."

"D-Do you like it?" he asks in a mumble.

The question confounds me and I bend down to pull him in for a hug. "I love it, bucko." Kneeling in front of him, I pass him the ribbon and busy myself with putting my wavy blonde hair up in a ponytail. It's always grown fast and when I put it up, the end of the ponytail reaches to my shoulder blades with my bangs coming across my forehead. I turn about still down on one knee and touch my hair. "Would you do me the honors?"

"Yeah!" he perks up and comes up behind me. I feel his hands rummaging through the base of my ponytail as the snaps the ribbon on. "It's something that took me awhile to make. It's imbued with magic properties, too, so it'll help in this journey." Impressive. He claims he's done and I rise, reaching my hand to it.

"Looks good?" I ask with a wink.

Haruka nods with a grand smile on his face. His happiness falls quickly when he sees the fairies behind me. "Are you sure you'll be fine?" he whispers.

"Believe in me, Haru, and that's all I'll need to make it through." I pat the bed and for him to sit and he listens while I take a sit beside him. With that talk done with, I turn to face the fairies as they approach us. "What do you need from us?"

Flora is first to talk. "Nothing much, child. We need Haruka to relax and focus on a memory of the young girl Master Yen Sid talked about; Ansem the Wise's daughter."

Fauna continues from there. "We'll take over from there, dear. Don't worry."

Merryweather is the last to speak. "And we'll send Ayano, here, right on her way."

That sounds easy enough. But it seems Haruka doesn't think it so. He tightens the hold he has on the hem of my shirt. The three fairies look at me, concerned for him. Pursing my lips, I nod with a lifted finger.

"I've got this."

Scooting over to leave some space, I bring Haruka down until his head is laying on my lap. I slowly start to stroke his hair as we stare at each other's eyes—his bright emeralds blinking up at my hazel tainted in gold. With a smile, I peacefully coax him. "Close your eyes and listen."

When he does, I continue.

"Once upon a time, there was a little boy. He was a very sad little boy, and he was sad because he was all alone." My fingers smoothly go through his hair and massage his head. "One day, he runs away from home and a girl comes to find him. She kindly asks of him to return with her but he refuses, angry and sad. At hearing this she takes a pendant of a red pearl and charms it with special magic. She chants, 'You don't need to be alone, anymore.'"

Underneath me, I feel Haruka's hand reach up to his chest where, under his blue vest, that same pendant rests. I go on. "She tells him, 'No matter what, I will never let you be alone. No matter how far apart we are or if I get lost and can't find my way back home, I'll find a way to you. Always.'"

A small sobbing starts from where Haruka is. "...I wanted to believe her."

"And you did."

 _Otherwise, I don't think I would have found you._

Turning up to face them, I nod slightly towards the fairies' direction. Flora nods in reply and comes to stand in front of me. Her wand aloft, she wriggles it a bit until the tip glows a bright red and with a few magic words murmured, she touches Haruka's temple before slowly pulling out a silver string. I confuse it for a hair until I see it shift from silver to clear to white and back again.

"Good," she whispers before trotting over to the mirror. "This silver lining is but one of many of those memories, my girl. Wherever it may lead you, you will find other remnants similar. Show them to the mirror. It will continue to guide you along until, hopefully, you find what you're looking for." The 'silver lining' hovers in midair as it detaches from her wand before one end touches the surface of the mirror and the whole thing disappears. The surface then glows the same color of silver.

Fauna raises a dainty hand. "Master Yen Sid also asked for our magic's assistance in your quest. We added it alongside his and it will surely aid you in your quest."

Flora steps back and briskly nods. "Hurry, child. Before it closes on us."

Haruka languidly sits up from his position and eyes the portal at the same time I do. His arms wrap around me, taking me by surprise. "Come back home, okay?"

I can only smile as I lay my cheek against his head. "I promise." He releases me and I go to stand in front of the mirror. I touch it a couple of times seeing the silver ripple like water.

 _This is it._

With one long breath, I turn to them with a smirk. "See you soon."

And then I jump. I feel nothing at first; utter emptiness. Then, out of nowhere, this huge pressure pushes against my body, squeezing it tightly. My lungs hurt as I try to hold my breath for as long as I can but I soon lose this battle. I'm forced to take a breath but instead of air there's nothing. Panic starts to come over me but it quickly disappears when I feel air enter my lungs an instant before I crash, face first, on the ground.

Looking up, I'm met with nothing but a gloomy atmosphere. Gloomy but somewhat melancholic. I get up and try looking around for clues as to where I am. There's dark buildings, monochrome almost. It's not until I turn a corner into town that I realize where I am.

It's OsTown.

But...there's no one here.

The streets are empty. Not even the Gremlins or the Animatronics are here. Not a sound is heard, either. It's really unsettling. I let that pass me as best as I can and continue forward until I arrive at the Dark Castle's borders.

I don't know what I find stranger: that up until now I heard nothing but silence or that now I hear something I can't quite place. Like a humming

Out of pure instinct, I fall back slowly against a fallen pillar and conceal myself with a mask. And like it's been happening as of late, Rinto moves from her position. She squirms her way around up to my left shoulder.

 _"It's ill advised to use your powers now, Master."_ Unlike before when she used to speak so monotonously, I hear the clear concern she holds about my wellbeing. _"I urge you, do not abuse them as you have done in the past. It will only harm you further."_

 _I know, Rin, but—_

I don't get time to finish that thought. Instead, the humming explodes into a high pitch behind me. Turning back, I have to cover my eyes a bit as a bright pillar of fluorescent blue light shoots up from down the way—from Os' house. But even that I've got no time to question because as soon as that pillar shoots up, it disappears, leaving behind only particles that float around before disappearing too. My jaw falls open but closes when I hear screams coming from the castle's direction.

This time the sound is a lot easier to identify. It's the citizens of Wasteland and all of them are running away from the castle, away from something. They run amok, scared out of their minds, but I soon see what it is they're running from. Heartless explode from every orifice of the castle entrance before they rush after the citizens. It's like a sea of darkness like I've never seen them before. These don't seem to be acting on their own; their more coordinated, more fluid. Almost as if they were working as one collective mind.

Wait. Heartless? Attacking Wasteland? That can't be possible. Wasteland is supposed to be protected by Oswald's barrier right now. He's strong as all high hell. With his kind of power, he should be able to sustain—

 _"It seems she's absorbed too much powers from you, Oswald. She will soon become a beacon to the Heartless like she did when we found her."_

 _No. It's not_ getting _attacked. It did_ get _attacked,_ _though._ My eyes turn towards the sky where only very few particles of light still remain from the pillar that had shot into the sky. _It got swarmed after I ran away with Oswald's star-shard._

All at once, it clicks together and my breath hitches. This place...it's not Wasteland. At least not the one I know presently. Could it be...that that mirror sent me back when Wasteland got ambushed by Heartless after I shot away? It makes since, though. Yen Sid did say before that the mirror would find any remnant similar to the memory it was given, regardless of where or _when_.

My mind in jumbles, it takes me a little bit longer that it should have for me to start heading deeper into the castle, against the current of people but still hidden. Shadows and Neoshadows are attacking everything and everywhere in a relentless frenzy. It's almost like they're looking for something. Stopping in my tracks at hearing a noise, I have only a couple of seconds to sidestep before the double doors burst open and Os comes out dragging Ortensia along. In the other hand, he holds one of his toys and electrocutes the Heartless as they pursue after them, knocking a hoard that come from the dining hall back. He pushes the doors closed and jams it but the little bastards are relentless.

Os doesn't waste time and turns to Ortensia, holding her by her shoulders. "Listen to me, Ortensia. You must find Ayano and leave Wasteland at once."

Her hands hold his. "No, I won't leave you."

"You have to!" Os flinches, as do I, when the Heartless thrash against the closed door, getting dnagerously close to breaking it apart. "We have to protect her." From where I am, all I can see is her looking at him with a frown. She sighs before nodding. "Good. Now go!" He shoves her along and she takes the lead to run. Oswald turns to the door with his gadget at the ready. The door then breaks easily as if made of glass.

I'm left speechless and immobile. They've always tried to protect me. That's all they've ever done. Before my renewed guilt can choke me, dread wins over when a couple of Heartless stop in their attack to glance my way. They stare, transfixed, before they change course and head towards me.

 _That's impossible. My masks—_

 _"Don't work on them,"_ Rinto reminds me with an urging tone. Panic mounts even higher when more start turning my way. _"Master, run!"_

I don't think it twice and sprint away. Most of the hoard that had broken through follows behind me and it's frightening me more. Despite that, I flee, jumping from shadow to shadow trying to space myself away from them. I don't know how but I get out of OsTown and reach Mickeyjunk Mountain. My stop at the foot of the mountain is brief as I catch my breath while I stare at the far off summit. Dark clouds hover over it, making it look much more threatening than it actually is. But at the moment, with so many Heartless after me, it seemed appropriate. Rain begins to fall but I ignore it. The Heartless start to attack and force me to take Ares out to fend them off as I climb the mountain, having no other way to go.

It's tiring and they come at me like there's no tomorrow. No matter how many Shadows or Neoshadows I defeat, more come at me. It's endless. Finally, I reach the mountain's summit but I don't know what good it'll do me here. I'm still being attacked. The only difference now is I'm cornered up here.

Tapping one end of Ares on the floor, I summon the war hammer on its side and ready it to strike. Before I can, though, a deafening shriek, like chirping birds, blasts in my ears a split second before thunder clamors down on one side of the mountain. Stumbling back, my eyes widen at seeing a piece of it fall alongside with any Heartless that had been standing there. Although I'm soaked to the bone, I hadn't notice that much darker clouds that hung over me; much less that it'd turned into a huge thunderstorm. The Heartless don't stop, though, and continue with their attack. I'm frozen in place not knowing what would come at me: the dark creatures or nature. The latter comes first as a couple of bolts hit at the mountain, the second striking dangerously close to where I stood.

The mountain begins crumbling beneath my feet. When I turn back to see where I could grab onto, a great fear comes over me. The height—I hadn't noticed how high I was. Petrified, I can't even move to grab onto any falling debris. Instead I fall and crash against the huge lake that sat around the mountain. My body runs colds as it breaks the surface of the water. The impact so forceful that it opens my lungs and I inhale nothing but water. I try hard—so damn hard—to struggle and swim to the surface but as I'm sinking something catches my limbs. Glancing behind me, all I see are black tendrils from the Shadows and Neoshadows that fell with me as they pull me down. The more I struggle, the more they tug. Soon I can't hold my breath anymore and swallow up more water.

 _I'm drowning._

My vision begins to blur with that thought. As I look up, all I see is the thunder that lights up the darken sky. During one of the flashes, a figure hovers over me seconds before I lose consciousness.

* * *

A dark figure touches the surface of the water, standing on it yet not sinking. Its body lean and ghastly was enveloped in dark clothes—a dress that flowed at the ends, dark mist flowing behind it in great volumes. The topside of its face, up to the bridge of its nose, is covered in a dark helmet and the same dark mist falls down their back in waves. Its arms, just like its other extremities, end in wisps of black mist. The figure—much too young and feminine—looks down into the lake as Ayano sinks deeper, Heartless dragging her further down.

She cocks her head before she opens her left palm. A dark light phases through her open hand before a dark Keyblade appears: simplistic in design, it only contains anything on the hilt. It was covered in white vines, some with thorns, a corner with the full bloom of a white lily. They extended down to wrap around the blade as it ended in three sharp spikes.

Slightly lifting her arm, the young woman brandishes it straight down where Ayano lies. A ray of black light shoots from the tip and strikes just below Ayano and makes a gold keyhole appear. It clicks before darkness spews from it swallowing Ayano whole.

* * *

"Thank you for letting me in."

The young man stares up at the other who'd spoken—his gray eyes twinkling in the moonlight, showing off specks of dark brown in them. He lifts his gaze from the ground letting waves of dark red hair fall away from his face.

The man who'd spoken to him—if one could call him such—sat languidly against a broken stone throne. The whole room they were currently in, in fact, was made of nothing but stone. He'd let this stranger in. And although he questioned himself now, there was no backing out.

"Don't," he answers, hating the gratitude he didn't feel the tiniest bit sincere. "It's a mutual agreement that got me to let you in. Nothing else."

"Yes, yes," the stranger calls cheerfully. "And I'm a man of my word if anything." The stranger moved from his place letting his long red hair, that he held in a long braid, fall from over his shoulder. The man strays his eyes from the floor to glance at the stranger for a brief second but immediately regrets it. Those bright crimson eyes were unnerving. "Here you go." With a flick of his wrists, a pair of golden bracelets appear in his hands. From where he stands so close to the throne, the man can see some odd engravings all along the bracelets. Tied together, the stranger twirled them both in one finger. "Now, your job is simple and as long as you follow everything step-by-step then you'll be rewarded for your hard work, my boy!"

The stranger stands from his sit and walks up to the young man. Despite him being a tad inch taller than the stranger in front of him, something about him was still immensely threatening. The stranger smiles and dangles the bracelets before his face, taunting him. "And if you're a _really_ good boy then I might even tell you where _that man_ is."

The task was easy, he had to admit that. Way too easy. "How can I know to trust you?"

The stranger laughs at this while holding the two bracelets in one hand. "Clearly you're not stupid. Good for you, boy. Good for you. Such a smart question deserves an answer." He sobers up and clears his throat but the smug smirk never leaves his face. "You can't." The young man scowls at this but the stranger isn't deterred from continuing. "As you yourself might have already guessed, this isn't a mutual agreement out of trust. It's a mutual agreement out of merit. You use me and I use you; quite a nice relationship so long as we both play nice; don't you think? Each their own means to an end."

Crude. Cynic. But he wasn't wrong.

The young man sighs before reaching out for the bracelets. Before he can grab them, though, the stranger pulls away before staring back at him with those eerie crimson eyes. "And remember my one condition, boy: I want her alive." He tosses the bracelets to him before smirking. "Wouldn't want those pesky powers of yours killing her by accident, now, would we?"

The young man's scowl deepens at the cruel reminder and his gloved hands tighten into a fist, the slight teal of his nails gleaming in the gaslight.

The stranger stares, his smile not disappearing as he taps his chin, pensively. "Now that we're on the clear on what we're each to do—" The stranger waves a hand out to the side summoning a dark portal. The man recognized it from before when he'd first heard the stranger's voice in his empty home. "Off you go."

The young man gazed at the dark portal. Taking a deep breath, he walked over to it before stepping through and disappearing, the portal vanishing behind him.

The stranger chuckles at the boy that'd left. Such a smart man, but so easily swayed. The stranger came back to the decrepit stone throne and leaned against one of the armrests. He plays with the end of his hair but stops when a ripple comes through the atmosphere. Seconds later, a dark portal opens and from it, the dark feminine figure crept out with the dark mist following after her. She glides to him and cups a hand against his ear; he remains unmoving as the creature whispers to him.

He listens calmly until something it said made him smirk widely, his cheeks splitting from end to end. This time he lets out a cackle and he bends forward, holding his stomach. The creature glides back to give him space as he sinks in his euphoria. When he's done and he looks up, his eyes shine brighter than ever as a red ribbon follows his gaze.

"Finally...all the pieces are coming together."

The stranger stands as the creature steps aside. He walks up to the wall and brushes his fingers against it. A dark energy seeps from his fingertips and it begins to crack the wall with the feather-light touch he gives it.

"Let the games begin."

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_

 _Almost two years. That's how long it took me to put everything together for this story. And I have everything: the outline, the characters, etc. Literally, EVERYTHING. So I'm finishing this one way or another._

 _Sad thing though is that_ _ **Curse of Ursus**_ _will be sharing a spot with my other new story,_ _ **Silent Lamb.**_ _And although the other will take priority simply because it takes me longer to write those chapters, I won't leave this story to dry. For sure, I won't leave you guys for longer than a month if anything._

 _But yeah, this is the beginning of a fourth story in my Kingdom Hearts fanfics. Yay! :D Not only that but as also said at the very beginning this is the very first collab I'm doing with someone else's OC. Thank you, again, Antex! Hope this lives up to your expectations!_

 _The rest of you got a brief introduction to him here but there's still no name to call him by. No worries c: Next chapter will bring many other new things to the table. As for the story, all of the you will be witness to what happens. Not even Antex knows!_

 _For now, I'll leave you this._

 _So welcome to the first chapter of a new story; the fourth installment of what I've endearingly dubbed_ _ **The Masked Liar Saga**_ _. Figured if Square Enix and Disney go to call KH a spiffy little name then so do I._

Thank you all for reading! Hoped you enjoyed the first chapter and staye


	2. Memoir II: Where Fate Conjoins

**Memoir II:**

 _Where Fate Conjoins_

* * *

For some reason, everything aches when I open my eyes. It's my head that hurts even more the moment the intense light from all around hits my pupils. Feeling it burn from the brightness, I instantly shut them and sit back, rubbing at them furiously.

" _Master?"_

Letting my eyes adjust, I peer around the place as Rinto's voice echoes in my head. "W-What happened?"

" _I am not entirely sure,"_ she replies. _"You fell from Mickeyjunk Mountain into the rivers below. After that, I don't believe either of us could register what occurred."_

Once able to, I stand up and walk around, trying to discern my surroundings. Before anything else, though, a bounciness catches me off guard. When I look down to see what it is, I'm flabbergast to find a flouncy skirt with a fluffy petticoat included. I yelp and can't help my hands as they reach down to pull it down further than where it lands on my knees. "What in hell's name—!"

" _Your clothes have changed."_

"Ya think!?"

Rinto either doesn't notice or ignores my sarcasm as she begins to move around my body in her tattoo form. _"I sense magic at work, Master. Perhaps it is Master Yen Sid's doing: to enhance your capabilities through your clothing."_

"B-But…" I mumble now gazing around at the outfit I'm wearing.

A passable top with thin straps is what I have as a shirt but it's nothing when I have a short-sleeved, hooded jacket trimmed in silver and red to cover with. My muffler, although quite damaged from the fights it's been through, is snugly wrapped around my neck without looking too cumbersome and with any extra ends coming out from under my jacket and out my back. My mind finds nothing wrong with any of that until the skirt that's flouncing about as I step forward. Completely red and black, it trimmed in silver too and and has diamond patterns at the hems .

"Why a skirt…?" Running my hand through my hair, I notice that that too changed. My hair that used to be down to halfway down my back is now up in a ponytail with the tresses brushing my shoulders.

" _It has trousers underneath. Does that not help?"_ Rinto's comment helps little to appease my discomfort.

I lift my skirts, petticoat and all, to see that I'm indeed wearing skin-tight pants that reach just to mid-thigh, "Yeah but...still." Shaking it off the best I can, I glance around over my surroundings to try and get my mind out of my garments. "Forget it; how about where we are? Got any idea on that?"

" _Yes, actually."_ Rinto shifts from her place to my left shoulder and I feel the slight burn it gives off. _"Traverse Town, or at least the version of it still in slumber."_

"Come again?" I ask as I tread my way slowly to the edge of the building I'm on. Overhead is a giant bell and beneath me is a plaza full of stores and hotels with bright neon signs. Flashy and tacky, if I do say so myself.

" _It's like Master Yen Sid said before to Riku and Sora. A dream of the world when it fell to darkness. This must be where you have to look, Master."_

My eyes come to linger over the edge but only for a bit before my huge phobia strikes me and I take a good amount of steps away from the ledge. But not wanting to be dragged around by it here too, I take a deep breath before testing something else. Using the bell's shadows as a platform, I test whether my acquired powers from before still work. Thankfully, I can still walk on the shadows that objects give off, but my footing is steadily shaking at best. That remains constantly at the back of my mind as I climb the shadows that are practically everywhere thanks to the bright neon lights and reach the ground fairly quickly.

"You've got any idea of where in this Traverse Town we are exactly?" I ask as I walk through the larger plaza.

" _Second District. If you head straight from here, you should reach the First."_

Good information to have. But when I take only a few steps forward, bursts of light sprout from nowhere and from the portals come Dream Eaters—the Nightmares that Yen Sid spoke of. Clicking my tongue, I take out Ares without waiting for the dogs or cats or whatever they are to attack first. Without warning, they rush at me and give me reason to start my counterattack. But it seems that for every one I pop out of existence, two more pop in.

 _This isn't going anywhere._

"How useless."

The deep voice catches me by surprise, enough to turn around and want to see whomever spoke. But doing that leaves me wide open from the back. Before I can even turn to pop some more Nightmares, a thin lizard wrapped into a wheel rolls around and runs over the Nightmares attacking me and keeps them at a distance. Turning once more to see who it was that spoke, I find a man jumping off from the ledge just a few feet away down to the plaza I'm at.

His black coat flares out as he lands before me. When it steadies, I see the distinct blotches of purple staining it—clouds—and the red fabric lining the inside. The high collar of the cloak itself covers his chin and mouth but I see the rest of him that leaves me slightly unnerved. Dark red, wavy hair curls around his face messily arrayed over wide yet somewhat sharp eyes. The intense mercury spiraling in them stares at me.

But that aloof and stupid face makes me remember what he just called me and my annoyance spikes from zero to a hundred really fast. "Who're you calling useless, you pack of—" Swirls of color appear around us before I can even finish my sentence, though. The Nightmares that begin pouring push us closer until we're completely surrounded.

"Not just useless but also loud." Now that I hear him closer to me, I know to differentiate him for the boy he is, not a man. Reaching his gloved-hand out—teal-colored nails catching my eye— he calls out for the lizard from before to roll out against the Nightmares. It hesitates to act but after a few seconds, it moves along and begins attacking the Nightmares.

"Vanish them before they band against us." Not liking that he's ordering me around but seeing no other way to do this, I follow his lead and start beating against them. Every time I can, I glance back at the boy to see him fighting barehanded. He doesn't seem to have any weapon whatsoever but I can see a strange...something swirling around his closed fists. Each time he makes contact with a Nightmare, it shrivels up and sinks into itself before popping out into its portal.

 _Strange._

I have little time to worry about this weird stranger when we're fighting but I happen to catch just enough to realize he's not defenseless. This is enough to tell me that I'm not to let my guard down. Thinking so much about this, though, leaves me open as I deal with the bunch that huddles around me. It's a bit late when I notice them but before I can react, the lizard rolls in and smashes them clean through. As it comes closer, it bumps into me and unrolls itself. It looks up at me with strange eyes—crosses of a purplish color that suddenly glimmer a bright red. The change takes me aback for a few seconds but it's enough for the lizard to twirl something in its tail before snapping it on my wrist. It happens in an instant and before I know it, the red is gone and the lizard rolls away to keep fighting.

I struggle trying to pry the thing off but there's no time for that. More of them are marching toward us and they're not just the cats and dogs anymore.

"Big...bear…" I mumble as I raise my gaze up to meet the huge Nightmare that bounces over. Awe-stricken, I can only watch as the bear raises its fist and swings it around. A black blur suddenly enters my field of vision as dark red follows quickly after.

It's him.

"Reflega!" A bright light that hurts my eyes engulfs us as he casts the spell. I flinch but open them quick enough to see the Nightmares that clash against the barrier he created bursting back. Before they can even a attack again, they're wrapped by the same strange power that enveloped his fists before. It swirls around them a second before they shrivel and disappear back into their portals.

Looking around, I notice that the one move took care of the whole crowd. _"Astonishing,"_ Rinto says under her breath. Yeah, not on my books. I've never seen powers like those—and something unknown and powerful spelled trouble for me.

Huffing, I straighten up before barking at him, "I could've handled that myself."

"Yeah. I totally saw that as you were getting surrounded," he replies as he turns about to face me. Now that I have a better view of him, I realize he's a head taller than me and it's making me crook my neck up in a weird angle. It aches somewhat but I don't let myself be intimidated, especially when the asshat just gives me this nonchalant expression that I'm starting to hate pretty fast.

The irritation makes me hold onto Ares tighter as I run my other hand through my hair, annoyed. "Yeah? Well, that's just how I—" The cold feeling of metal against my forehead makes me remember that very annoying lizard and what it'd done. I try prying it off again but it's tight around my wrist and it won't budge. There's no clasp or anything, either.

Instantly, I flare up and shove my wrist at him. "Take it off."

His eyes linger at the gold bracelet and sighs irritated. _Oh, that can't be good._ "I can't."

"Oh, you better take this is before I pop your head off your shoulders."

At this, he scoffs and places a hand against his hips. "I'd like to see you try."

 _This little prick!_

Out of pure annoyance, I charge at him but he seems to read me and simply sidesteps to avoid it. That just adds to my anger but he raises his hands in surrender and speaks before I have time to kick his ass.

"It did the same thing to me." He shakes his hands side to side and I hear metal clanking against metal. My eyes come up to his left wrist and see a similar gold bracelet. But at turning back to his meet his gaze, I'm unnerved by the aloofness he has.

Raising up Ares, I call out his bluff. "You're lying." He shakes his head but I don't believe him. I know a liar when I see one. Tapping the back of Ares against the floor, a spike comes out from the opposite end and I aim it at him. "You have three seconds to tell me the truth. One."

"I am telling you—"

"Two."

"If you would listen."

My grip on Ares tightens as I see him lower his hands, readying them for any attack he might see coming. Pretenses are over the moment I see this. "Thre—ah!"

Out of the blue, the lizard latches onto my staff and moves it just enough to misaligned my attack as I rush forward. Taking the advantage, the boy falls back before pulling his arm back for the punch. The swirling dark energy from before comes to cover his fist. Something in me instantly panics at seeing this. Despite not knowing what it is, I've seen what it can do and I don't want to be at its receiving end. Thinking fast, I raise my staff to block it as the lizard still holds onto it. Inadvertently, the Dream Eater takes the hit for me.

It shrivels on impact and collapses into itself before disappearing into a portal. The boy clicks his tongue and keeps striking at me. This time, however, I don't see the dark energy from before as he quickly throws punch after punch. I block and avoid as I try figuring out just what I'm up against. It's after the first dozen missed strikes that I realize what it is.

 _He needs to charge it up._

It makes sense. It's why he won't do it again and instead chooses to throw hits at me. He stands away and takes a stance, pulling his arm away.

"Like I'm letting you!" Changing Ares into its hammer-form, I dash at the boy intending to pummel him to the ground. Instantly, he loses the stance and jumps back up to the upper floors of the plaza, letting my hammer strike at the ground and denting it. I don't let him take his time and quickly follow after him.

Tiring him out and not letting him fight at his pace is my best bet. I'm not gonna let him get away with doing whatever he's planning. This damn bracelet is coming off—one way or another.

This dance continues as I chase him out of the Second District and into the First. As he runs, he keeps dashing through pretty much everywhere. For being the mammoth of a boy that he is, he's pretty lithe. But he isn't the only one that's fast. Using the shadows that this bright city gives, I go about chasing him. I see him headed to a dead end from overhead and step in place to give him a massive hit.

But just as I'm stepping onto the next shadow...I feel nothing beneath me. Panic sets in me and I scream as I struggle to find any footing. But I just can't seem to and the floor is fast approaching. Before I hit, someone tackles me in midair and we both roll onto the ground, rolling past what must've been stairs and onto lower ground as they pin me down. Opening my eyes, I meet mercurial pools that stare down at me as I finally see his whole face, a shit-eating grin plastering it.

"Now that I have your utmost attention maybe you'll listen," he says a bit out of breath and with sweat running down his forehead. That attention quickly falters though as the hands that are holding onto my wrists begin to feel oddly cold—ice cold. Not only that but I can literally feel something seeping out of me. As if noticing this too, he flinches and curses under his breath as his own focus and hold falter. This gives me enough time to concentrate on my counterattack.

 _Okay, Rin. Let's try that nifty trick we've been working on._

" _Yes, Master."_ At her acknowledging the order, I feel my eyes burn slightly as I activate my Deceiving Eyes.

"Hey, prick!" The call is enough to make him turn and the moment he meets my eyes, I implant the tiny bit of information into my illusion. I hear the hissing and snapping of a snake as it springs forward from beneath me. Caught in the illusion I created, the boy falls back and releases me, giving me just enough leeway to do as I want. Sitting up and pulling my arm back, I strike his head hard enough to send him back. He goes far and hits against one of the railings and I hold my breath for a few seconds. Thankfully doesn't stand back up once he falls and by then I'm sure he's out cold.

My eyes catch sight of the snake from before—a huge black cobra—as it wraps itself around me like a cocoon. At reaching out it, though, my hand phases right through. A grin comes to me at this—the thing may not be real but, boy, will it give anyone a scare.

A chuckle escapes me at finally being able to test it successfully and I raise from my seat on the floor. "Thanks, Ri—"

My words are cut short as a sudden dizziness hits me. It's not just dizziness, either; it's like someone hit me on the side of my head. I struggle to stand and grab onto the nearby railings to help myself. As I touch my forehead, my eyes catch a glimmer of gold. When I look at my hand, I find the gold bracelet that the stupid lizard had put on me is glowing faintly. My vision a bit blurry, I blink a couple of times before looking back at the unconscious boy from before. It's then that I notice the same glow coming from his bracelet.

 _What in the…_

"Ayano?" The familiarity of that voice makes me spin on my heels slowly to meet Riku's confused stare. Beside him is a redheaded girl with a black cap and large doe-like eyes.

I can't answer right away as the dizziness and pain still have me. Blinking a couple of more times, I shake my head before wryly smiling at him. "Hey, Riku. F-Fancy meeting you here."

Riku runs up to me with the girl following closely behind and I clearly see the concern etched on both their faces. He helps me stand straight and hands me a small crystal bottle, "Here. It'll help." Taking his word for it, I uncork the potion and down it in one gulp. Biting down on the little candies it had in the liquid, I feel much better as the potion does it's job. With a quick thanks, he checks that I'm fine before turning to look at the Sleeping Beauty I knocked out. "Is he—"

"Unconscious," I tell him as I look over my shoulder at the same guy. "Knocked him out cold with a punch." Jokingly, I punch against my own open palm but cringe at how my knuckles hurt from hitting him.

"You were attacked?" the girl asks, worried.

I can only nod. "But it's funny coming from a guy who saved me a couple of minutes before. Then again…" I trail off as I reach down to pick up Ares and shrink it back to a smaller size, "I did attack him first."

"It doesn't matter; if he attacked you, then you should come with us," Riku suggests. "Leaving you here with the creep doesn't sit well with me."

It's at hearing this that I shrug my shoulders and give him a genuine smile. "Don't let it ruffle your feathers, Riku. I'll be fine. I dealt with him before you got here, didn't I?" He keeps quiet at this but does purse his lips in concern. "Besides, you've got more important things to think about like—oh, I don't know, an itty bitty test?"

Riku's gaze comes up and meets mine. He's trying to convince me without talking. It's something he's really good at for some reason. Bright and piercing, I don't let it convince me. Instead I stand my ground and he seems to finally cave as he heaves a long sigh. Wow, I have an awesome effect on people to make them do that every time.

"I hope I don't regret leaving you by yourself," he mumbles but smiles crookedly.

I reciprocate with a toothy one of my own and sign at him that everything would be okay. "No worries here, cap'n. You focus on your test, I'll focus on what I've come to do."

"What _are_ you here to do?" That the girl asked that out of the blue makes me a bit suspicious. I give Riku a glance to voice this but he doesn't seem to notice it. Well, he would know who he's hanging out with.

So, instead, I give her a sweet smile and zip my lips closed with my fingers. I wink before saying, "That's for me to know and you to wonder. Now, I believe you were heading that-a-way, right?" I wave out my arms at them so that they can continue on their way. "Come on now. On with you two." Playfully, I nudge away at the girl and then at Riku to make some distance between us.

He looks back briefly but at seeing me nod, he just nods back with a smile before turning to the girl, "Let's go, Shiki." She mumbles in agreement before the two start off on their way.

Standing back, I raise my hands over my head and wave at their retreating backs. "Good luck and be careful!" I keep at this until they're out of sight. It's only until they're gone that I switch back to a more serious expression and head back to where Sleeping Beauty is. Squatting down beside him, I poke at his cheek hoping that the punch I gave him will bruise.

He deserves it.

At the thought of pain, however, I'm reminded of the mild ache in my own head that I still feel. Even after drinking that potion, a faint aching sensation still lingers. It's like an echo that just bounces in my head.

" _Strange."_

"What is?" I ask Rinto as she speaks up. Her voice soothes the pain a bit so I keep her talking.

" _The origin of your injuries—it's unsourced."_

"Unsourced? Like...you didn't know where it came from unsourced?"

" _Precisely. All I have in my records is that it happened right after you hit the young man."_

 _Did it now?_

It's hard to come up with a rational reason for what happened, so I have to quickly run through my mind for everything that happened during our struggle to find something. We fought, he tackled me down as I fell—mental check about that stumble on the shadows, too.

" _Noted,"_ Rinto replies as I continue my thought process.

To help me remember better, I stand up and retrace our steps after landing in front of the Accessory Shop. He pinned me, flinched for whatever reason, and then I scared the living hell out of him before punching him and knocking him out. Another thought then came as I recall all this.

"The pain didn't come instantly."

" _It was indeed delayed but it did come after that, Master."_

Delayed...after I punched him. My hand reaches up to my head unconsciously and it's then that I feel cold metal against my temple. Taking it back, my eyes inspect the gleam of the gold bracelet as the gaslight hits it.

 _The bracelets—they were shining._

That final thought makes me gasp as an idea comes to me. Coming over to him again, I squat down and reach out to pinch his cheek. I pinch as hard as I can and notice the red spot from it as the blood comes and goes from it. It takes a few seconds but I hiss and grab at my own cheek as a sharp pain comes to it. And just like before, when this happens, the bracelets shine again before dimming back down.

 _Oh, that's just great._

"They're linking us."

" _Master?"_

"These stupid bracelets." I try prying at mine again uselessly but just as furiously. "Whatever happens to him, I feel it. I'm pretty sure it works both ways, though."

" _The pain is still registered as unsourced though,"_ Rinto affirms as she moves around my body and towards my wrist. _"And I cannot register any disturbances from either of your wrists."_

"You can't find them?" I ask. Placing my finger between my wrist and the bracelet proved just how tight the thing is. How the hell does she not feel it?

A groan from beside me gets me to turn back and see our big man finally waking up. He feels his face and head before he groans most likely from the pain. Good.

"Morning."

Blinking a couple of times, he turns to me with a grimace. "You—the snake—"

"Yes, yes," I say, passively soothing the air around him so he stops talking. "That's a topic for another day. But right now, I'm the one that's gonna ask questions. And before you refuse, I'll let you know that if you don't cooperate, well, I'll just let you feel the pain of a lifetime."

"What are you talking about?" he asks, confused and angry.

A wicked grin comes to my face. Oh, I'm enjoying this way too much. Pinching my own arm, he frowns for a few seconds before the small pain comes to his and he reaches to grab it. Realization hits him slowly but once it does and he turns to look at me again, I have a fist just below both our belts.

"Now, are we on the same page?" I ask.

His immediate response is a click of the tongue and a snarky remark, "You're a real itch with a capital B."

"Thanks." The mere fact that I accept that as a compliment baffles him but I leave him there as I stand up. "But so long as we're on the same page, I'll be asking you to remove this thing from me." At saying that, I shove my wrist back at his face as he too stands up.

Lifting a finger, he pushes my hand away from his face before turning down to frown at me. "I believe I already told you that I can't—I don't know how."

"Then you better learn, buddy, because either this goes out or I'll be dealing some massive hits until you do."

"Look, posh, I'm not lying. The Dream Eater wasn't even mine; it accompanied me here and I have no idea how or why." He lifted his own wrist showing of his own golden bracelet before raising an eyebrow. "You and I are on the same boat, though. That little excuse for a reptile also snapped one around me out of nowhere."

"Oh sure," I burst out. "Like I'm supposed to believe that!"

"I don't care if you believe it or not, it's the truth," he called raising his voice too.

"Well, then maybe some punches will help you be more truthful..." I say while raising my fist threateningly.

A sudden laughter catches us off guard and at turning we both see a young boy standing upstairs just in front of the Accessory Shop. His blonde wavy hair bounces as he laughs, and his brown eyes scan both of us before coming down closer. "You two sure fight a lot."

Before I can even ask, Mr. I'm-a-saint beside me speaks first. "Who are you?"

The blonde places a hand over his chest before nodding, "My name is Joshua. I see there's much hostility here."

He's acting all cutesy and it irritates me. I'm already pretty much overflowing with annoyance with redhead freak here showing up and this Joshua guy isn't helping. That annoyance is clearly heard in my words, "What do you want?"

Joshua turns to me and smiles before motioning away to the door behind them where I remembered Riku and the girl, Shiki, leaving through. "Just to give a quick quid-pro-quo. After all, Riku and Sora helped me out a lot just now. I'd like the return the favor."

An eyebrow of mine raises at hearing this, "Riku and Sora helped you?"

"Just now," he replies with another nod to the door. "They brought my friends together again. And since they already left, I suppose helping friends of theirs is good enough. But since I don't know what you want, would you mind telling me? Perhaps there is a way I can help."

Immediately, my hand comes up to my wrist and twirls the bracelet around my wrist. Reaching my hand out, I show him the bracelet. "Can you remove this?"

Joshua reaches out and takes my wrist in his hands to inspect it. His thumb brushes over some scriptures that I failed to see before—they look like letters but they also look like pictures. His eyes go over it slowly and methodically. The more time he takes, the more I get this got feeling that he won't have an answer. It's not until he hums pensively that I'm proven right.

 _Goodness, I hate it when I'm right._

"I'm sorry. I can't help you remove them," Joshua says. "I know little of these artifacts but from the engravings, I can tell you that they were made to unite gods."

"Gods?" the guy beside me asks incredulously as he twists his own around with his other hand.

Joshua nods, releases my wrist, and addresses us both with a pensive expression. "By joining them to endure the pain of the other, it's supposed to quell infighting. But seeing as these were meant for gods, it stands to reason that only gods can remove them."

Great. I sigh and can't help but want to choke the redhead beside me. I struggle to hold back my murderous intent. Thankfully—or regrettably—a ridiculous question comes to mind and stops me. "You don't happen to know any gods, do you?"

Joshua smirks but shakes his head. "Sorry."

 _Well, worth a shot._

"Is there anything else you can tell us about the bracelets?" the redhead asks.

Joshua thinks for a second before speaking. "Well, I've pretty much summarized it just now." He looks at his hand to tick off what he knows. "First, only gods can remove them. Second, as you both are joined by a pair, you will feel the pain that the other feels. Rather useless and counterproductive feature if you ask me."

"What do you mean?" I ask curious.

"You'll feel the pain but suffer no injuries. If they're not that serious, that is." I dread asking why but I do so anyway and Joshua nods understanding my confusion. "It brings me to the last thing I know about them: you can't be separate from each other."

"Excuse me?" redhead says. At hearing how the pitch of his voice raises, I'm driven to think he doesn't like how that does. Frankly, neither do I. "Separate how?"

"Well," Joshua begins, tapping at his chin with a finger. "Being far from one another distance-wise. If one separates too much from the other, then the bracelets would deem that as foul play. In essence, it would exterminate the two of you."

Exterminate. That does _not_ sound good...at all. I came looking for a solution to my and Haruka's problem, not bring another load of trouble to my platter. "H-How far is 'too far'?"

"Specifically? I'd say that being worlds apart would constitute being too far from one another." He ponders on it a few more seconds before nodding. "Sounds about right." That leaves me pretty dishearten but it seems that the story doesn't end there. "But that's the bad news I have."

Redhead boy scoffs at hearing this. "Can't imagine the type of good news you'd have after that."

"Well, it depends," Joshua said and from his pocket picks a green ring. My eyes land at it and I can't help but feel I've seen it somewhere before. It doesn't hit me until he rotates it in his hand and I see it glimmer in the gaslight. That ring...that's the ring that I saw Thea—the _other_ Ayano's mother—wearing in the picture I found back in Radiant Garden. It'd been one of the pieces of jewelry she'd been wearing. My hand reaches up to the small tear-shaped blue pearl that I'm wearing on my left earlobe—the only remaining piece that I found in the castle.

"That's mine." Baffled at hearing this, I turn to my side to see the redhead boy as he stares at the piece in Joshua's hands. Despite everything that's happened, I see something in his eyes that I hadn't before. There's some sort of tenderness in them—a small glint but it's undeniably there. And it takes me by surprise.

"Yes, I'm aware of that," Joshua replies. Now that confuses me even more and I turn to give him a puzzled look. Could I be confusing the ring? No, the thing had been too exquisite and unique to not be distinguishable. That's Thea's ring for sure. "I found it in the Fifth District after Sora defeated the Nightmare there." Joshua turns to face me then with a smile. "I know why the two of you are here. I've got to say, what you want to do will be an arduous task. But if you wish to achieve what you're after, then I'd suggest sticking together. Not just to avoid getting eliminated but also as support." When I give him an are-you-insane droll stare with a raise eyebrow, he chuckles and motions at us both. "I'm just saying, perhaps two minds will work better than one."

He reaches out to take my hand and places the ring in it—much to the redhead's bickering—before closing them with his own. "What you're searching for won't be easy to find. They'll likely be in everyday objects in the worlds you visit. And searching such vasts places will take forever for one person. To do what you want, you might need some help. So, why not take it?"

The moment he lets go, the ring in my hands begins to glow. Rings upon rings of light surround us as the light becomes more and more blinding and makes me cover my eyes from the intensity alone. Before I know it, Joshua's figure begins to fade into the shining light along with the rest of the district. All I hear before he completely disappears is, "Good luck."

The light fades out slowly and when I open my eyes, I'm astonished to see such a familiar place. The golden sands all around us spreads like mist and seems to be floating upward like a reverse waterfall.

" _Master, we're…"_

"Yeah," I whisper as the Ring's familiar beauty astounds me yet again. "It's the Ring of the Fallen."

"What...is this place?" I turn to see meet redhead's eyes, equal parts surprised and annoyed. It irks me to see him here but it also reminds me of our little inconvenience. That itself makes me groan in frustration. This is just adding a load of complications to what I'm already doing. Refraining from answering his question, though, I look back out towards the sands before a gust of wind suddenly blows.

Wind rushes past me as if I were falling, but I know I'm not. I still feel the floor beneath my feet. It takes me a moment to prepare myself, seeing as I still _feel_ like I'm falling, but when I open my eyes, I'm dumbfounded by what I see. It's like I'm standing in place with a world of golden dust passing by me—I'm sinking lower as the wind rushes upward, pieces of some kind of debris coming from between the sands.

Pieces that look like paper.

I reach out to touch one that passes by but when I do, they brush past my fingers like flakes of dust before reforming. When I touch them, they suddenly shine brightly like a mosaic that has light shined onto them. Suddenly it's not just gold anymore. Every piece that flutters past seems to have a different color—no, that's not right. They're not changing colors.

They're playing something. Like a film.

 _They're...their memories._

When I try to focus on them, I notice that they begin to come together and form larger panes of what look like transparent glass but still as dust-like as before when I tried touching them. With them like this is how I'm able to focus on the bigger picture.

It's Ayano; the other Ayano. And she looks so happy.

It amazes me that I can see such fully clear picture when before the Ring only showed me illusions made of golden dust. This isn't like that. It isn't one color or only the people connected to the memory. These...are much more like remembering my own memories.

It's as if I can really _see_ through my own eyes her life with _those three_ : Haruka, Ienzo, and Kairi. Her adoptive siblings.

This must've been sometime after Haruka first ran away. After he became more open, like the others had. It's easy to see how happy he was to be with them. What bothers me at seeing this is that neither Ansem the Wise nor Thea are in the memory. And because of my limited knowledge of how they were before, I can't even guess where in time this took place, either. All I'm left with is a small vision of what was once. And for some reason, that's plenty satisfying.

"How absurd." At hearing his voice, I spin on my heels to find the redhead boy from before taking a knee beside me, apparently watching the same memory I am with just as much clarity.

"They were happy," I counter.

"It's astounding how you cannot see how fake that is." He clicks his tongue and sighs as he rises, "Things like that...seldom last."

When he says this, the ground beneath us shatters and this time we're really free-falling out of nowhere. Although scared, I hold in my screams and instead focus as much as I can on the pieces floating past us as they start forming a whole new picture. They're not showing Haruka's or Ayano's memories anymore—of that I'm pretty sure. Instead, these new memories are different; they're bleaker and much more choppy as well. Despite this, I can still grasp some sense of what's going on.

In them, I see a dark room adorned with toys and a small bed. On that bed sat a woman, beautiful in her own right. Gorgeous long crimson hair cascaded around her in waves, a couple of braids running behind her ear and adorned in pretty little crystals that glimmered in the dim light. On her lap sat a toddler—from what I can see maybe about three years old. At seeing them together, I see the obvious.

 _They're mother and child._

The boy was a spitting image of his mother, especially their smiles. Where hers was warm and loving, his was bright and joyful. Before the boy, the woman held a large tethered book. Some pages stuck out, some were of different colors, some looked old, others appeared new. The book itself looked like a large handmade tome.

I could hear her speaking with a very soothing voice but her words were scattered, broken almost. It's hard to understand some but from I do get, I can tell that she was telling the boy some kind of story and I just caught the tail end of it. As she finishes, she says something along the lines of 'leaving it there for the night.' The boy pouts, saying he wanted to hear more.

The woman laughs at his antiques. It's an airy laugh, infectious even. She closes the book and holds the boy close to tickle him. His laugh is very much like hers and I can't help but crack a smile at how happy they look. Putting the book back in its shelf, the woman comes back to begin tucking the boy in bed.

She strokes his head before planting a kiss on his forehead. It's only when she raises her head that I catch a glimpse of her bright blue eyes, along with the glow of an emerald ring that glows under the dim lighting. "Goodnight, my little Akio."

"Goodnight, mommy," he whispers as she tucks him in safely. Treading back to the door, she looks backs to see her little boy falling sound asleep. A smile comes to her lips and when she closes the door the room goes black.

No—not just the room. Everything went dark here, too. An instant later, just like that, our fall that seemed to go on forever stops in the gentlest of ways. A small breeze softens our fall and we land on a solid ground that is seamless against the walls or ceiling. Everything is still dark around us. All I can see if the boy as stands beside me..

Standing up, I look around and notice nothing but two archways there. One looks to only be frame with no actual doors and a dark background that lets it blend in with the rest of the space. The other still has no doors but instead of black, I see what looks to be Traverse Town's First District. Pushing my hand through it, I pull back the instant it passes through.

Oh boy, it's been years since I last dealt with portals opening on a whim. I hope these, at least, aren't as picky to open as the ones from Start Shards.

"What a waste of time."

I turn about to frown at him and see him as he dusts off his burly coat. "You bashing on the happiness of others isn't good for you, you know? You'll end up a sourpuss." _Not like he isn't already._ Scoffing, I motion my hand dismissively, "Besides, what's so wrong with Ayano and that little boy being happy?"

"Little boy?" he repeats with a raised eyebrow. "What little boy?"

For a second there, I want to point out how blind he was but it's Rinto that stops me. _"As broken as the memory was, Master, it is plausible he wasn't able to see it."_

 _I did, though._

" _Your eyes are different. They perceive different things in different ways. Even when not active."_

Well, that explains some things at least. Before I have time to ask Rinto how we're going to get out of here, I hear a very obnoxious voice speak once more. "Give me back my ring."

It's baffling to me that he's asking this and I turn ready to give him a fight for it. "Excuse me?" I show the ring I've been holding during our whole skydiving fiasco and hold it up for him to see. "This is my brother's mother's ring. It belongs to him."

"No," he says fervently. He opens his hand expectantly, believing I'd just drop it in like that. What an idiot. "That belongs to my mother; a friend of hers gave it to her. Believe me, I saw that ring plenty of times. She never took it off."

"How come I have it then?" I ask with a smug grin. My humor doesn't seem to work on him. It actually seems to piss him off more.

Before he has a chance to counter with any other stupid argument, though, a small orb of light surfaces from the ring I hold between my fingers. Surprising and shutting up both of us, it floats away and towards the second arc. It lands on the blank sigil just above it and a new emblem appears: a mosaic of bells. Once the emblem pops up, the rest of the arc follows and lights up like how the portal to Traverse Town is lit. But instead of Traverse Town, I see a very distinct city on the other side, the sound of tolling bells coming from there.

" _The memory. Master, the memory must be what triggered the portal's opening."_

Just like the fairies and Yen Sid said it would. It's guiding me where more of its kind are. And if I follow it...I'll find what I'm looking for.

"Are you going to give it to me or am I going to have to take it from you?" The rude comment stops my train of thought and makes me face him again. The frown on his face irritates me—or his face as a whole, not sure which—and so does the outstretched hand he puts out once more.

But as I angrily glare back at him, I notice something that peeks my curiosity. It's a strange thought but one that I can't very well shake out of my mind. Asking outright would be stupid. But I've got leverage right now and with it I can quell my curiosity as well as ensure my survival from random 'extermination' due to weird ass bracelet magic.

Tossing the ring in the air before catching it, I watch closely at how he cringes in worry. Well, that's enough to know he really does treasure it. As I twirl it in my pinky, I think over what I want to say before putting out my bargain.

"All right, boy. Let's get things straight." Clearing my throat, I stand in front of the new portal before facing him. "I'm heading in here. And because of your stupid lizard Dream Eater, I now have another thorn on my side to deal with: you. So here's what's going to happen: you're going to come with me."

"Like hell—" But before he can even finish that sentence, I shush him with a terse tone.

"I don't think you heard me correctly," I say with a smug grin. "You're coming with me; whether you come conscious or not is up to you, buddy."

He frowns sourly and comes up to me to stand face to face. Despite him towering over me, I still don't feel intimidated. "As if you could take me."

"News flash, big man," I say with a fake gasp before smirking. "I already have. So unless you want to meet my scaly little friend again, I think we both know what you're gonna do."

At the mention of the illusion from before, he cringes and steps back. As he does this, I can't help but think about my earlier hunch. The more I stare at him, the more assured I am that I'm right.

Rinto scoffs before saying, _"There is a way to find out."_

True. Before I can ask though, he steps back again and catches my attention. Running a hand of teal-nails through his hair, he sighs utterly defeated. "Fine."

"How swell~" I coo with a clap of my hands. "Hope you like this groovy vacation then."

"Don't patronize me," he quickly retorts at hearing my comment. "You're not the only one with things to do, things to search for. Grudgingly, I admit that pressing forth together is the better plan. Not one I like but it's necessary, nonetheless."

This makes me shrug my shoulders in aloof agreement. "Fair enough. I'm Ayano, by the way. I don't like the idea of traveling with you, either. But let's agree on the necessity part. Also—" Time to see whether my hunch is right, "What's your name? I can't very well keep calling you names, as fun as coming up with those is."

His mercurial stare averts for a second before coming back to meet my own. "Akio. Akio Kagawa."

Rinto's chuckle echoes through my head. _"I will never understand what surprises me more: your ludicrous hunches, or the fact that most of the times, they turn out to be right."_

A snort comes out at hearing that. It seems he interprets that as me laughing at him because I see a vein popping at his temple from the annoyance. "What?"

I shake my head and drown the chuckle that threatens to escape me, "Nothing." My eyes come down to the ring that I fiddle with before turning up to face him again. "Here, catch." I toss the ring at him and his reflexes are fast enough to catch it.

He stares at it before looking back at me, dumbfounded. "Just like that?"

"You said it was yours," I reply. When his brow furrows in confusion at my sudden change of mind, I tap at my head and grin. "First lesson for you: I'm an ingenious lie detector, Akio. Besides, I just needed the memory in it to open that portal," I say and thumb at the arc. "To me, it's nothing more than a cheap trinket now."

Before he can say anything in response to that, I motion at the portal behind me. The tolling of the bells becomes louder as I turn and take a step inside. "How 'bout we go already."

As I take a step forward into it, I see his shadow as he comes closer to pass the portal alongside me. A smirk comes to my face seeing him so compliant and yet still so cantankerous. It makes me genuinely curious about what the hell happened to the kid I saw in that memory to make him change from such a bundle of joy to this pessimistic grouch.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_

 _Ah, this took longer than expected. Forget that I haven't had time or that I'm having so much to do with graduation so close. The inspirations been an ever fleeting thing on this story. But I'll write it. No matter how long it takes. I'll try not to let what happened when I was writing_ _ **"The Girl Who Cried Snake"**_ _happen again._

 _This chapter's short in comparison to what I've written for others but, I believe for this story short chapters will be the start. It may be that they'll get longer the further into the story we are but we'll have to see. But I do apologize if it's too short with the long wait you all had to go through (-.-u)_

 _First, let me say that I love to see old faces. Couple of people I remember from the previous stories have already dropped by to show their support and I love you for doing that :D You have no idea how happy it makes me to know people are actually following this series as I write it TwT Thanks. You all are the true MVPs._

 _I'll say a quick thank you to the people who Favorited and Followed:  
_ _ **\- patamon642  
\- Antex- The Legendary Zoroark  
\- xXChaoticOrderXx**_

 _Well, I've left you hanging for long enough and I'm sorry about that. I really hoped you guys enjoyed the chapter, though. I'll try to slowly write the next but I can't promise anything with how hectic life's been for me. But so long as I have your guys' support, I'm sure I can do this :)_

 _Anyway, hoped you enjoyed the chapter and stay tuned for the next update!_


	3. Memoir III: Teach What You Learn

_**Memoir III:**_

 _Teach What You Learn_

* * *

Crowds—I hate crowds. And this place is packed with people upon people drinking, cheering, or playing around and having what looks like to be a good time. What I absolutely abhor about this is the fact that they're all—touching—me.

"For goodness sake!" I shout at the top of lungs. The attempt to disperse the people in front of me with that outburst is useless, though, as they all cheer. They're in such a festive mood that they just assume me to be cheering with them. That just grinds my gears that much more. "Unbelievable…" I hiss under my breath and bring my hood over my head to try and get some personal space back from all these people.

"A festival, by the looks of it," Akio points out with a passive glance as a group of scantily clad ladies pass by us with drinks in hand.

"Obviously," I mutter and come around to a random person, one that looked somewhat sober. After asking him a couple of times, I find, in between sputters and slurs, what's being celebrated so wildly by the whole city. "The Feast of Fools. Something about being allowed to do all the things that they're not the rest of the year." I repeat and glance over at the huge cathedral standing before us. The bells aren't tolling but the building itself astounds me, its architecture flawless from the outside. I wonder if it's like that on the inside too.

Before my mind completely wonders out of bounds, the flare of a black coat as it moves by me catches my attention and I sprint up to Akio as he steps closer to the cathedral. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

He gives a curt nod to the outlandish church. "Investigating."

"Have you forgotten about these?" I ask incredulous before bringing up my wrist where the golden bracelet lays.

"Hardly," he tells me with a nonchalance that's getting annoying before moving me aside with one arm. "Relax, will you? I'm not leaving the world. Besides, our best chance of finding a way to rid ourselves of these bracelets and for you to find…" he scoffs and shakes his head, "whatever it is you're looking for, is for us to split up and look separately."

He isn't wrong. Joshua said so himself. The pieces that contain the memories themselves are commonplace items, but if I had to guess, I'd say that they're in pieces just like Thea's ring. That thing had a connection with her and with the other Ayano's family. Common items would be hard to find themselves, and that was even truer for tinier ones like jewelry.

By all accounts, searching separately would be much more efficient. Still…

 _It gives me a bad feeling._

And I don't keep quiet about it. "I don't know you, and by default I don't trust you, but…" I sigh knowing that the faster we do this, the better it would be for everybody. "I'll allow it. You ask around here and I'll search the cathedral."

"No," he deadpanned. "No way am I dealing with drunkards and fools. You search the town and I'll take the cathedral."

"I am not arguing with you," I tell him and stand face-to-face with him, my neck arching back a bit from the difference in height. "Go or I won't care about unleashing my snaky friend on you even if it hurts me."

His expression dulls but it's obvious that he still remembers the illusion I showed him in Traverse Town. Sighing in exasperation, he agrees only if we meet again by nightfall. Seeing that he wouldn't budge otherwise, we both agree to meet back here and go our separate ways. He's lost in the crowd quickly and I don't bother looking after him, instead choosing to go towards the monumental church before me. The doors creak open as I push them ajar, just enough to come in. The noise from outside echoes in the inside of the empty walls and completely disappears once I close the doors behind me. It's quiet as I walk further in and notice that the stone walls are good at soundproofing the place. There's not many people here, either, probably outside in the festival, and the light that comes from outside is dulled by the panes of stained glass.

It's rather peaceful compared to the outside and that makes me feel a little bit better from before. But as I step forward and past the side entrances of the upper towers, the very recognizable moaning of the doors as they open reaches my ears. Instantly and out of habit, I rush to stand behind a stone pillar that hides me well as Riku's voice becomes distinctively clear as he calls out, his voice ringing through the room.

"Is anybody here?"

To my surprise another voice answers, a timid and hesitant voice. "Who...who are you?"

Curious about who replied, I peek over the edge of the pillar and see Riku along with someone else. A man...at least what looks like one. It's hard to see due to the faint lighting and shadows that play around their faces but I can tell as much from his voice as they keep talking. Riku's looking for some Frollo fellow and the hunchback man, Quasimodo, directs him to the outskirts and also starts talking about 'his master' when Riku asked him. My curiosity alone makes me stay longer to listen.

"He's...he's very kind. Master Frollo saved my live," Quasimodo answers. "He protects me from the outside world."

 _Outside world?_

" _A pariah,"_ Rinto suggests with an underlying tone that gives off pity in my ears. _"With such appearance I can understand why."_

My knuckles grasp tightly at the stone before me as I lower myself to completely hide behind it. _Like me…_

And what he says as he continues rings much too familiar to my ears. People are cruel to those they deem different; they seldom try to understand and instead they fear us.

"Trust me, looks can be deceiving. A friend sees you for who you are, no matter what face you wear." Riku's reply to the hunchback's shaky words strike a chord in me as well and make me smile to myself.

Back when I first left Wasteland and landed at Hollow Bastion, he had been forthright about approaching me. He was scared, I could tell, yet he still spoke to me, looked me in the eye, and helped me. Even during and after his whole struggle with the darkness—something I was sure he still beat himself up for—he was kind to others, myself included. Where Sora's kindness was prominent and simple, Riku's was subtler.

A scoff from Riku knocks me out of my train of thought as he continues. "I have a friend who is much like you—afraid of others judging her for what she is—but she found people who accept her, who care no matter what or who she is. She was secluded, antisocial even, but learned that there is good in the world."

I hold my hands over my mouth, trying to hide the chuckle that threatens to escape me at hearing a much too specific description of myself. Yeah, his kindness is subtler but not different from Sora's.

"You should go out there—find some friends that understand you like she did," he suggests with a lightened tone. As their conversation ends, I can't help but feel slightly annoyed and grateful about the words Riku left Quasimodo.

What's holding him back could very well be himself, not Frollo.

And what could very well be holding me back from trusting others willingly could be myself and this crippling notion that everyone lies.

" _You aren't mistaken, though,"_ Rinto reassures me. _"No one is ever truthful with everything."_

"Someone is," I whisper, reminding her and myself of the one person that showed me a world past the lies I've seen. A world where truth exists and kindness is a gift. His goofy grin pops in my mind along with those bright eyes, blue as the sky.

He's the reason I still believe that there's a way to cure us. He's the reason I'm still going despite how hopeless this would have all seemed to me over a year ago. And it's all simply because I know he would do the it without a qualm in the world.

"Sora's just that kind of guy, you know," I murmur under my breath with a chuckle.

" _Indeed he is."_

The creak of the cathedral doors takes my attention. Standing back up, I catch the glimpse of Riku's back as he leaves and find myself in this mostly empty church with Quasimodo. Figuring he would know of anything strange and out-of-place in the cathedral he's never supposed to leave, I come out from my hiding place as he turns to leave and call out to him with a primp 'hello.'

The hunchback turns and jumps, startled out of his mind as he tries to hide his face behind his hands. I come up and wave my hands dismissively. "I-It's okay," I assure him patiently. "I didn't mean to startle you." I laugh a little to myself and point to the slightly ajar doors of the cathedral where sound pours in from the outside. "It sure sounds like they're having a blast out there. Maybe you should join them. Looks like you could have lots of fun, too."

His hands drop from his face and he shows a crooked smile. "M-Maybe but...outside is—"

"Scary," I finish for him and nod a couple of times. "It seems so, huh? But that's just what you can see from the inside looking out. But just imagine...what the world would look like being there with them, being a part of them."

He doesn't answer but his smile becomes less strained, as if he feels a bit more at ease about talking to me. "Who are you, miss?"

"My name's Aya," I reply coming a bit closer to hear and see him better. He steps back and that's my cue to stop and respect his space. I do, and simply talk from where I stand. "I'm looking for some things and I was hoping you could help."

"Things?" he asks.

With a nod, I explain further. "Lost items of an acquaintance of mine." Partially a lie. But if I told him they were mine, then he'd question why I'm looking for them. That's a can of worms that I don't want to open with anybody. "Very commonplace items, really, but I don't exactly remember what they were. All I know is that they could maybe be pieces of jewelry or the like. Things that…" I play with my hands, trying to figure out the best way to put this, "wouldn't necessarily fit in with everything else in this city, this cathedral even."

Quasimodo nods along as I explain but shakes his head as I'm done. "I-I'm sorry, but I'm not aware of any sort of items like the ones you speak of." Tough luck, I suppose. Quasimodo gives me a small smile, though. "Y-You are welcomed to search the cathedral, though. I hope that you find what you are searching for." With that said, he leaves, trotting back to a nearby staircase.

"Yeah," I whisper under my breath as my shoulders slack. "I hope so too." Taking his invitation, I walk further into the cathedral and look around searching aimlessly. Despite not having a plan or even an idea of where or what they could be, I still look around. Nothing seems out of place. People pray, candles burn, offers are set down beneath a saint's pedestal. Everything seems in accordance to how this world is.

"What a pitiful sight you Rescuers have turned out to be."

The sudden deep voice that echos through the stone walls rings in a way that doesn't let me pinpoint it at first. It isn't until the loud smack of iron hitting iron reaches my ears that I turn towards the entrance of the cathedral to find a man. He stands before the bolted doors wearing a black coat and raised hood that hides his face from my view.

Black coats are never good.

I pull out Ares and extend it with the spikes on one end before pointing it his way. I'll act first and ask questions later—that seems safest to me right now.

"Who are you and what the hell are you talking about?" I demand as I take a few steps forward. As I do, my ears catch a ruckus coming from outside. Lots of yelling and screams.

 _What's going on out there?_

But instead of charging at the man that stands in my way, I stand still and ready. I know what I should do but I'm kept here by some fear that clutches at my chest. It feels like my heart is being squeezed and it leaves my breathing shallow, but I try to control it the best I can to appear intimidating.

"Nobody that concerns you," he says and lifts the hood to take it off, revealing a rather young man. He's nobody I recognize but the silver hair, dark skin, and gold eyes certainly give me a very uncomfortable feeling and it makes me hold onto Ares that much tighter. "But I will not allow you to interfere." With a snap of his fingers, portals open that let Nightmares escape and flood the space between him and I. "Rescuer or not, you are but a child and as such, you know nothing. What fate befell you before will certainly befall you again, of that I am certain. It is only a matter of time. But then again—" The eyes of the Nightmares turn dark red and a dark mist starts to surround them, something that I haven't seen from any of the others I've fought so far. This is different. It's strange. And it definitely does not bode well for me. "—I am no admirer of loose ends."

The silver-haired man opens a portal behind him before stepping into it. I try to reach him but the Nightmares cut my path and instead begin attacking. It leaves me no choice but to fight back as I'm left watching him leave while defending myself.

After a few minutes, I'm only done with a couple and am tired beyond my mind. I wasn't wrong. These Nightmares are different from the ones I've fought before. I have nowhere to run to, though. They block my one exit and defeating all of them is proving impossible by myself.

"Rin!" I yell over the ruckus of the fight as I jump back from the attack of a Zolephant. "Find me escapes routes!"

" _On it."_ I endure this onslaught for a few more minutes until she points out the staircases, the same ones that Quasimodo took before. _"They should lead up to the bell tower."_

"Good enough for me!" I shout before changing the spikes for the hammer. Sweeping it across the ground, I clear enough room for me to make a run for the staircase. Once in, I turn and slam the doors shut with a wooden beam I found nearby. The door bends under a hit from the other side and it makes me jump back onto the stairs. I don't waste another second and instead run the length of the stairs until I reach the top door. Bursting through, I turn and lock the door behind me again.

I don't know for how long those will keep them but whatever time I have is good. The gorgeous scenery I see over the city takes me by surprise and stuns me for a second. Despite it's beauty, I don't have time to admire the sunset that hits over it as the wind above me bellows and pushes against me.

Turning my head up, I catch the sight of a Dream Eater. A huge one, too, complete with wings and a big tail. A bat?

" _It's headed for the bridge,"_ Rinto points out as I see it fly past the city and towards the bridge that seems to separate the main city from its outskirts. Noise from below makes me look over the edge for a few seconds—which in itself gives me vertigo—and it's enough to see as the Nightmares that I had been fighting before rush through the screaming crowd below in the square and head in the bat's general direction.

"He's not the only one."

Interfere. That man didn't want me anywhere near something or somebody. And whatever it may be, it's seems the party has moved places. Taking a step up onto the parapet, I cringe at seeing the floor several feet beneath me. Fear cripples me for a second.

" _The stairs, master."_

"I-It'll take too long," I tell her in my weak attempt to convince both of us. My hands grip tightly at the edges of the parapet before hosting myself upward and onto the edge. Ignoring my shaking legs, I look up and towards the rooftops of the many houses lining the city. "If I climb through the houses, it'll be faster."

" _But your powers have already failed you before in Traverse Town!"_

I'm painfully aware of that but—

"I can't let fear keep me from helping them." For all I know, Riku and Sora could be in trouble. I needed to get to where the Nightmares were and fast. I'm about to let them down.

Before my mind and reason can stop me, I scan for the nearest shadow and leap towards it. I keep the scream from leaving my throat but I feel anxiety taking my lungs by a tight hold. It's not letting me breath and makes me hold my breath. It isn't until I reach the shadow and have a more-or-less steady footing that I can breath again. The respite is short though as my footing starts becoming wobbly, just like before. I have a few seconds to jump to the next couple of shadows before finally finding a clear standing on a rooftop.

Shaking, I place my hands on my knees and take several deep breaths to calm myself down.

" _You did good, master."_

 _Thanks._ Standing back up and only feeling the residual hold on my chest and lungs, I rush towards the bridge. By the time I get there and stand midway through, there's nothing but fire and ash that reaches the air. Whatever had flown over here had attacked it fiercely on its way.

"What the hell are they trying to do?" I pant under my breath unable to understand exactly what their intentions are.

" _Behind you!"_

Brandishing my staff as I turn at Rinto's warning, I'm just in time to avoid an attack and to draw the Nightmare that dealt it back. A black mist lingers on Ares and I shake it off before turning to the Dream Eaters that had ambushed me back at the city. Can't believe I beat them here. Before I can even think about anything else, though, they start attacking me.

The fires that still burn behind me lick at my back and give me a rather small arena to fight. The Nightmares aren't bothered in the slightest and instead hit me with everything they have. They're determined to beat me and it's working. I can't fight them on for long. Not with whatever is empowering them doing so.

A sharp ringing comes to my ears a second before something lands onto the bridge between me and the Nightmares, the landing exploding in an array of black and purple energy that ripples around and pushes the Nightmares back. Some fall over the bridge while others wither and disappear into their portals.

 _This power…_

"Akio!" I yell at him as he raises from his place, rotating the arm he used to hit the ground.

"Quit yelling," he mutters and turns to see more Nightmares with the same black mist and red eyes surrounding them. "Great. More." As they jump to attack him, he levels his arms in defense. Before they reach him, however, I turn Ares into the hammer and slam it against the ground and pop it out of existence.

Lifting it over my shoulder, I glare at him before saying, "I'm not yelling, you idiot. Where the hell did you—" I swing the hammer again against one of the standing arches, destroying it and letting pieces of it fall on the Drill Sye that had been readying to charge at us. "—come from?"

"The villages outside of the city," he grunts as he himself charges up. He steps back with one foot and lets the dark energy swirl around his fist before charging forward. The attack alone rushes through a hoard of Woeflowers, Tama Sheep, and Yoggy Rams. Those hit directly whither while the rest that were nearby the attack fly outwards in all directions. Some come my way and I simply lift the hammer over my shoulder before batting them out of existence.

"Home run!" I call as a Tama Sheep wobbles away in the air before popping.

Akio jumps back to stand beside me and clicks his tongue seemingly annoyed. "You shouldn't be so happy that I'm the one kicking their ass and you get the leftovers."

"I'm helping!" I burst out in anger.

"Barely," he mutters.

Before I can yell at him again, a rush of air above us takes us by surprise and shuts us up immediately. We both look up and see the same bat Nightmare that I saw from the cathedral. It came from the village where Akio said he'd been.

"The Wargoyle caught up?" he says aloud rather astounded.

"You saw it?" I ask instead.

"It burned out the villages in the outskirts," he says as the thing quickly approaches us. "It's being controlled by one of the denizens of this world and it was going to head to the cathedral. I came here to cut it off."

I can see it's dead set on getting there, too, but when it suddenly stops just above us, a bad feeling settles in my gut. "I-It stopped."

The hoards beneath us suddenly stop moving and disappear into different portals. I don't understand why, not until the same glint of red they had in their eyes suddenly appears in the Wargoyle's eyes. It's not only that but also the black mist that surrounds it, like chains holding it down. Out of nowhere, it turns towards us and begins shooting fire balls. Akio and I avoid them in tandem but it drives us to the edge of the bridge. There's no time for either of us to do anything. The Wargoyle bats its wings and sends small tornadoes that hit us directly and send us over the edge.

Out of fear and panic, I scream but my voice is cut short the moment my back crashes with the surface of the water. The cold hits me hard and I can feel the water seeping through my tightly sealed lips. I try to move but I find it hard to. Whatever the Wargoyle hit us with is holding my arms tight against my body. Barely managing to, I open my eyes and catch the glimpse of Akio struggling against misty black bindings. I try doing the same but I can't keep it up for long. I'm beyond tired and I can't hold my breath anymore. My mouth bursts open and before I know it my visions blurs to dark.

* * *

Letting his power surge through his body instead of his arms took much less effort but the fact that he could feel a pressure in lungs as they filled with water despite having his mouth closed told Akio something wasn't right. Letting the power erupt whole, he broke through his bindings before turning about in the murky water searching for the blonde girl. Finding her as she sank lower and lower, he swam as fast as he could to catch her. But at holding her, a strange yet familiar feeling sunk in his chest. He could feel life energy—her energy—surging into his body wherever he touched. That he could see the dark energy he was used to begin to latch itself against her skin was prove enough of what he felt. But his powers weren't helping him this time. Instead of feeling better from what energy he was taking from her, he could feel how her getting weakened by his powers was affecting him for the worse rather than for the better. The bracelets were making this worse than it should be.

 _I need to get us out of here before I kill us both._

Swimming against the current, he rushed to reach the surface. It only took a few seconds but as he broke through, he could still feel his lungs compressed, suffocating from water that wasn't in his lungs but in hers. Even as the current swept them further away, Akio hurried to the shore and slung her onto it before hoisting himself up as well. Not wasting anytime, he began pumping his hands against her chest, wanting desperately to stop his own pain. Despite the contact, he was working fast so he could stop touching her and unlatch the dark energy that still kept taking energy from her. But no matter how much he did it, nothing happened.

 _She's still not breathing._

And he could feel the suffocation getting worse. It was quickly getting harder to breath, harder to keep his sight focused. He didn't want to but simply pressing her chest wasn't doing it. In the end, he knew what he had to do to save them both. He gave a couple more presses before leaning forward, pinching her nose and letting her mouth fall open. As he leaned down with just mere inches between them, water spurted out of her mouth to hit him right in the face, making him jump back. As she began to cough and gasp for air, Akio did the same, glad to feel the air filtering through his lungs with more ease.

Aya sat up and with glossy eyes looked around. She was out of it still, he could tell. A frown came to her as she turned to meet his eyes. "What...happened?"

"The Wargoyle threw us off the bridge," he explained and spit out to the side wanting to get rid of the sensation of water in his throat that he knew wasn't real. "You almost drowned."

"Drowned," she repeated and glanced back at the river just a few feet away and then back to her drenched clothes. Some semblance of mindfulness seemed to reach her as she turned back to him. "Thanks...for saving me."

Akio took the words in stride and shrugged his shoulders. "Don't. It was more self-preservation than anything." He spit out again before getting up from his place and wringing his coat from the water. "You owe me one."

At hearing this, Ayano glared and stood up herself, the spunk from before returning as she wrung her on clothes, starting with her heavy skirts. Turning about to where they were, she raised her voice. "We got swept away quite a distance."

She wasn't wrong, he thought. The bridge was ways away from where they were which meant that they were some ways away from the city too. Nonetheless, Akio could still see something that pointed them to were the Wargoyle had gone after attacking them. He pointed at the smoke that rose overhead and towards what he assumed to be the city. "If we follow the red smoke, we should reach the city."

"What makes you so sure?" she asked, incredulous.

"The judge," Akio instantly said, somewhat irritated that he had to explain everything he said and did. "He was in the outskirts where I was. He said something about a bonfire being held to execute some 'witch.' A friend of the bell ringer's from what information I could gather."

"Quasimodo's?" she muttered. Akio was about to ask about the name when she turned towards the smoke. Handling her staff in one hand, Ayano stabbed it against the ground before it began burning red. "Fire." A burst of warmth escaped the staff that enveloped them both. Akio wasn't sure how well versed she was in magic but it seemed that she had somehow managed to alter a simple Fire spell enough to dry them instantly. Before he knew it, her hand grabbed at his wrist and began dragging him behind her, "Let's go."

His eyes caught the tendrils of black as they started reaching out from his skin towards her hand. "Whoa," he called and yanked his hand out of her grip. She turned with a peeved look on her eyes, brow furrowed and all, but he wasn't about to let her yank his chain around when she wanted to. "You're insane if you think I'm following you to where that insane judge is. He's the one controlling the Nightmare."

"So?"

Her answer made him raise an eyebrow. "Are you suicidal? We're looking for completely different things. Involving ourselves in unnecessary situations will only be a hassle."

"We can continue searching later," she assured him but the same frown from before remained. "What's happening now is more important. I'm done letting others suffer when I can help."

"Then go die by yourself for all I care"

"You should care," she said and raised her wrist. "Because if I go down, you go down with me, pal."

Akio had forgotten somewhat—like he tended to—about the bracelets again. "Then I'll tie you down and wait till this whole thing is over. I'm not going to let you put my life in danger."

"I'll beat you unconscious if I have to until you can't fight me anymore." She smirked and prepped her staff in one hand as spikes came out of one end. "And remember I've done it before. It won't be hard to do it again."

Akio clicked his tongue. Fighting her was the last thing he wanted to do. He wanted to avoid pain as much as possible and fighting her would certainly cause that—not to mention that as exhausted as he was after that incident, he couldn't control his powers well enough. Curiosity did have him, though, as to why she was so adamant at wanting to help them—these people and a world that she didn't know and that wouldn't thank her for what she would do. "Why are you so stubborn about this? It shouldn't matter to you because it's none of your business."

At saying that, Akio could see her eyes changing. The stark blue-green from before morphed into a vibrant red that streaked light as she moved back and stared at his own gray ones. "Just because it's none of my business, doesn't mean it's not important or not worth fighting for."

Without another word, she turned about and headed towards the city. Akio was awestruck for a second as he let her words sink in. She was putting herself in peril—himself as well—for people and a world she didn't even know. He didn't understand her way of thinking. It was plain obvious that she didn't have a plan and was simply charging ahead. All she knew, that he could tell, was that she wanted to fight for these people.

 _It isn't worth doing._

And yet she went.

Sighing in frustration and confusion, Akio rubbed the back of his neck. Groaning at his own indecisiveness, he opted to go after her. If she was going to be stupid by herself, then he would let her. He wasn't about to get himself killed. But seeing as they were connected, he wouldn't let her stupidity get him killed either.

"Self-preservation," he muttered as he followed after her, seeing her back as he began catching up to her and she reached the outskirts of the city that was red and going up in flames. "All I have to do is keep myself alive."

And if he had to babysit her stupid ass to make it, then he would do it.

* * *

 _This isn't right._

Hiding behind a building's wall, I glance ahead to the square where countless of people are at. Some are caged in metal cages like animals and a multitude is being held at bay by guards. All are protesting, yelling and shouting obscenities, at the execution that would happen. From where I stand I can see the judge, Frollo as many were yelling, as he stood with a lit torch in hand. A poor woman is tied on a wooden stake with bales of hay surrounding her.

Akio hadn't been lying; Frollo's going to burn her to death. I need to stop this. When I take one step out, though, a hand grabs onto my shoulder and stops me in my tracks.

"Don't just barge in." Recognizing the voice, I glare behind me at Akio as he breathes deeply, almost panting.

"Don't try to stop me," I tell him between gritted teeth.

"I won't," he corrects me and instead shakes his head. "I have no idea what possesses you to be so damn caring but it seems I can't stop you without a fight. Since it doesn't benefit me, I won't but I'm not about to let you kill us either. Your own damn stupidity should only affect you. Sadly, because of these, that's not the case."

"Are you done?" I ask, tired of his aberrant speech.

"Hardly," he says but averts his gaze to look at the riot that's happening because of the execution. "But it can wait. Right now, this seems more urgent."

"No kidding," she mutters and gives him her back to face the rioting people. "We need to stop this."

"Not without a plan," Akio tells me. "Or at least a distraction." His arm reaches over my shoulder and points at something I had missed: Nightmares, standing at the ready to fight. What's worse some of them were those misty black ones with the red pulsing eyes. "They're quite vigilant. I doubt they'll let us just stride in and rescue her."

"What type of distraction were you thinking?" I ask.

"Anything, really."

At that, Frollo lights the bales on fire and panic rushes through me. "Then we have to think of something. Fast."

Akio opens his mouth but his attention and mine are taken when the bells of the cathedral start to ring. A few seconds later is when I catch from by the corner of my eye something running along the cathedral walls. It's Quasimodo and he sways down on a rope from the cathedral to land right before the stake. Neither Frollo nor his soldiers can do anything as Quasimodo takes the woman from her doom and back to the cathedral's parapets. Lifting her in the air, he yells for her sanctuary.

"That's something," Akio mutters. "He's claiming sanctuary for the girl."

"This buys us time to rescue the rest," I tell him. A grin comes to me as a blonde man stands atop the cages and urges the citizens to act against Frollo who declared war on their city, on 'Notre Dame herself.' And they were not going to allow it. The crowd breaks out into a full on attack against the guards.

"Think that's enough of a distraction?" I ask and storm in through the crowd. He follows behind and we get to some people as they try to fight off the Nightmares that come at them. Despite fighting them off, some storm into the open cathedral without anybody's notice. And that's not good. "They're going after Quasi!" Without a second thought, I follow after them and ignore Akio's shouts for me to stay. Running into the cathedral, I flinch as a wooden pillar falls from above and smashes the carriage near Frollo right outside. The judge turns towards the cathedral—towards me—and on instinct I shut the door and draw the beam to lock it. This should hold them off for a while.

As I stand here, a tremor shakes the stone walls and makes me turn up. Someone's fighting up there.

"Ah!" The scream of panic make me turn to three tiny people—not people, they're stone; gargoyles?—as they try fighting the Nightmares but are beginning to be overwhelmed by them. Running up to them, I skid to a stop with Ares brandishing its hammer.

"Get away from here," I tell them as I begin smashing through the Dream Eaters.

"No way, sweetheart!" one calls as it jumps and squashes a Woeflower. "We won't let them reach Quasi."

"You're his friends?" I mutter under my breath as I sweep a number of them across the floor and against a wall.

"Of course!" the old lady gargoyle calls out as she smashes one too.

The thinner one jumps on two before coming back to the other two gargoyles. "And we're not about to abandon him."

They're support and fighting spirit is great to have and it helps me clean up the mess of Nightmares. They begin to celebrate but when they do, a most disparaging noise reaches my ears and makes me cover them. Turning up to the walls above the saint, I see a dark figure. I can't make out what it is but by how the light hits it, it's not all dark. When the light hits parts of it, something shines silver, and it's when those silver things scratch against the stone that the cacophonous noise rings through. It scratches against the stone again before arching itself backward and letting out a harrowing screech that's just as off-pitch and dissonant as the other sound.

As it screeches, dark portals appear and from them more Nightmares come. These, however, are the nightmares with glaring red eyes and black mist surrounding them. They're more powerful.

Even so.

"Go," I tell them and take a stance in between them and the Nightmares. "Quasi needs you more. I'll take care of things here." They don't protest as the walls shake again and leave promptly. The Nightmares don't seem to be bothered that they left. Instead they're entirely focused on me. Gripping tightly onto Ares, I grit my teeth, "I won't let you reach any of them." Not waiting to be attacked, I charge first and deal with a couple before they even see me coming. The rest are more resilient now that they're aware of my intentions. They defend and attack in tandem, as if they could coordinate or even think strategically, but I'm managing.

It's the sudden screeching that catches me off guard again as the creature from before drops from its perch. The scratching against marble comes as it rushes towards me way too quickly. I bring Ares up to block whatever it had coming towards me but it never arrives. Instead I hear the whistling of air as Akio's fist, followed by him, comes from behind me and punches the thing dead on. The impact stops each dead on their tracks but the burst of black energy sends the creature flying onto the far walls of the cathedral. It screeches again as it dislodges itself from the crater the impact made, making pieces of stone—and something shiny that catches my eye—fall beneath it. It opens a dark portal and slithers through. Without preamble, Akio turns to me and towards the remaining Nightmares. I nod and we both go against them with all we've got. Instead of working separately, I stay by his side, seeing that it's much more efficient for us to work together than apart.

It works and within a few minutes we're panting and exhausted but we've dealt with every single Nightmare that had appeared.

As we stay still, I notice how I'm hearing nothing except our heavy breathing. There's no more tremors and there was no more yelling from outside either. It's silent and I don't know whether that's good or bad.

Remembering what had caught my attention before, I trot over beneath where the creature had disappeared. Looking through the rubble, a glint of gold catches my eye. It takes me moving aside some boulders and rubbish to uncover a charm bracelet of golden pearls. It's a little cracked but I recognize it. It's another of Thea's jewelry—the same bracelet I saw her wearing in that photo.

 _Rinto…do you sense anything from it?_

Rinto remains quiet for a second and she hums to herself, curiously enough, before addressing me. _"I do. It is odd but I cannot place what I sense coming from it. It is, however, very reminiscent of how the ring from before felt."_

It must have a memory in it then. Closing my fist around the bracelet, I turn to Akio who's shaking his hands as if to alleviate some pain from them. It's brief but a crackle of dark energy dances across his hands; it's fast, almost enough to make me think I hadn't seen it, but that he shakes his hands as it passes makes me think that it's not as imaginary as I thought it to be. Whatever powers he uses must cause him some kind of pain or something by the looks of it. And he used them to fight with me when he didn't have to. Self-preservation or not, he did it. He helped me and we won against those Nightmares because of that. If Haruka's company taught me anything over the past year, it is that thanks should be given were thanks are due.

"Thank you," I tell him straightforward, my grip on the bracelet tightening. "You helped me through this. Even when you complained about not wanting to."

"Again," he says with a sigh. "Don't. I did because of—"

"Self-preservation," I say with him. He gives me a droll stare that makes me scoff. Akio rolls his eyes before averting them away from me.

"Don't think it's for free," he reminds me as he cracks his knuckles. "With this, you owe me two already." He turns back to me and nods at my hands. "Did you find what you were looking for?"

At hearing that, I raise the bracelet to catch his eye. Thankfully, he doesn't seem to recognize it which means it's nothing of importance to him and I don't have to fight him for it like I did the ring from before. "I think so."

A gleam from the windows makes me face them. From them, I see the sun as it raises. The night had passed and I hadn't even noticed. Guess all dark passed eventually. Trotting past Akio, I head to the door and, seeing it open, I step through and out into the sunlight but hide immediately using my masks when I see Quasimodo and what I take to be his friends. They're not the entire reason I hide, though, Riku is.

As Akio steps out and stands behind me, I reach out my hand to keep him from walking out of my mask's range in order to keep him hidden. From here we watch and overhear as they talk.

"You know the silver-haired boy?" Akio asks nonchalantly.

I turn to him and his eyes tell me nothing. There's no ill intention in his words but I can't fully tell what he's thinking either. But lying about knowing Riku wouldn't do me any good. On the other hand, telling the truth would do me no harm. So I opt for the latter.

"I do," I reply and lower my hand. "He's a very dear friend of mine."

"What stupidity."

The comment comes out of nowhere and I can't help but retort. "Excuse me?"

"Having friends is idiotic," he announces as if nothing. "They'll all leave you eventually. And when they do, you'll just end up hurt. It's best to not cling onto false friendships."

"There's nothing 'false' about it," I protest, getting really irritated about his cynicism. After everything we've been through, I am sure there's nothing fake about our friendship, no matter how much I may deter from it at times. I grip onto the golden pearl bracelet tighter as I speak again. "They're my friends and no matter what happens I'll believe in them because I know they will believe in me just as much."

Out of nowhere, a shine comes from the bracelet I'm holding. The light is blinding and I let it fall from my hand as I raise them to cover my eyes. When I do, the light engulfs us and when I open my eyes again, I'm back at the Ring of the Fallen. Sadly, Akio is still here.

Like before, the sands rush skyward without any preamble and the same pieces of glass from before fly past us. This time, as they conjoin and even before the scenery plays through the panes of glass, I feel my heart heavy. As the glass pane forms and the memory plays, I see them—Ayano's family—torn apart...and I can't tell why.

This memory is slightly torn and again it happens as if I were watching this from someone else's eyes. I see Kairi and Haruka as their taken away, pleading to me not to allow this. They don't want to leave us. Their cries strike me and I can't help myself from reaching out to them. But even though I feel myself doing that, the person in the memory doesn't move. Kairi and Haruka scream and cry and I ignore them.

"Aya-nee! Aya-nee!"

 _Ayano?_

No. She would never let this happen. She loved those children. When Thea brought them to live with them, it was Ayano that tried her hardest to get them acclimated. She loved those children.

So why…?

"Why aren't you stopping them?" I yell at the top of my lungs uselessly. They're taken away and Ayano did nothing to stop it. The scene changes—the panes of glass glossing over in silver before they change back and I catch the sight of Ansem taking Ienzo away, the two of them standing in the doorway of her room. Like before, Ayano does and says nothing.

This time, though, I think it's because of what Ansem told her.

"Stay in your room, Ayano," he said with a stern tone. "And please, refrain from making a ruckus again. This is what is best for them. I hope you can understand that."

The pressure on my chest increases and I feel my heart being squeezed as if by an invisible hand. The emotions that surge through me are like a floodgate breaking open. And despite this overwhelming feeling, I say nothing.

I obey. And that just makes me feel worse.

"I told you. Friends, family, anybody close to you leaves even if you don't want them to." This voice doesn't echo like the rest and I recognize it too. Akio's words don't do any good to my fleeting emotions and I have no strength to tell him off like I would have. "In the end, we only have our own selves to rely on."

Drowned by emotions I can't control or recognize, I have no will to tell him the contrary. Instead, as soon as he finishes, the room around us breaks and we begin to fall. And like before, I try to focus on the pieces that pass us by.

This one is short, though. It's just the same boy from before—Akio. He's sitting in the middle of a ransacked room, furniture overturned and pieces of broken glass and ceramics around him, while holding tightly onto a book—the tome from before. The boy cries loudly in the middle of the night, the moonlight coming in through the window and shining on the stream of tears that runs down his face.

Huge mercurial doe-eyes shine as he cries out. "M-Mama! Papa! C-Come back! P-P-Please!...I'm s-scared." He hugs the book closer to himself and buries his face against it, his tears marring the edges of pages. "...d-don't leave me all alone."

Everything ends there as we land softly against the black floor. Turning up, I see the gates from before: Traverse Town and Quasimodo's world. A third gate is next to Quasi's now and it's like Quasi's was before: just a frame with a blank insignia.

A small light shines below me and I look down to see that from the bracelet that I hold a small orb of light surfaces. It floats and hovers its way to the frame, transforming it into a doorway. As it comes to be I hear horns blowing, the crashing of waves, and the whistling of the wind.

Another world, another memory.

 _How many more will be like this one?_

It pains me to think about it. But even so...

I pocket the golden pearl bracelet and brush my hand against my eyes to rub off any tears that might had come to them before turning to Akio. He has an aloof expression on his face and it bothers me that the boy from before was so indifferent now. It made me curious about what had happened to him—what had happened to his parents—but most of all, it made me sad that he had turned like this. I knew the fear of that little boy from before; being alone is scary. And I understand how living like that could jade someone, even if a little.

I also understand that even as bad as he is, he can still change. After all, I changed for the better even after all I went through. Back when I would feel alone even in a crowded place.

" _And you're not alone anymore,"_ Rinto soothingly reminds me. I let her words sink and take a breath to calm myself. Doing that let's me remind myself that what I saw, what I felt, didn't happen to me. It happened to the other Ayano. And it happened a long time ago.

My convictions renewed, I face him again and smile, not caring that his eyebrow raises in question. "Even if that happened, I won't change my mind. No one's meant to fight on their own. No one can withstand that kind of solitude, no matter how much they think they can. It's just too sad to be alone forever...don't you think?"

Akio doesn't answer my question. Instead, he averts his gaze towards the door. "Is that where we're going next?"

It seems normal to avoid questions like these so I don't blame or push him for an answer. I nod and walk towards the door, hearing him close behind me. Glancing up, I take a glance at the insignia that came over the door: what looks like a black dragon with vibrant green eyes.

Quickly I take Akio's wrist in my hand. He tries to rid himself of my grip but I don't let him pull away; even though I feel something odd from where my skin touches his, I don't mind it. Being alone...no one deserves that. I've been taught as much. And I want to teach him what I've learn, too.

Giving him a grand grin, I take a step in and turn back to him over my shoulder. "You're too young to be such a grouch, Aki. You should try seeing things in a more more positive light. Doesn't that sound like a better idea?" He doesn't get a chance to reply. Without warning, I yank him after me as we jump into the next world.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _It's been awhile, I know -w- And I'm sorry about that. Lots of things have been going on recently. Just recently graduated but I've got lots of more tests to study for. Don't know how soon I'll upload but I assure you that I will :)_

 _This chapter felt kind of short for me, for some reason. Although I went through La Cite de Cloches, this, Traverse Town, and World that Never Was, will be the only other ones that I will be writing that align with the canon game. That means that four new worlds that will give me much more creative freedom and hopefully longer chapters too. In case you're interested, I'll give a hint: none of those four will be any Disney films. And if you want a definitive hint on what next world they'll be visiting, feel free to check my twitter (shameless self-promotion cx). It's xkeyoftheabyssx and I post things on how my writing is going for the stories I'm working on. Some other stuff too. It's the best way I found on how to update on the statuses of stories without actually needing to wait until I update again. So yeah :D_

 _Let's give some thanks to the wonderful people who Favorited, Followed, and Reviewed!_

 _ **-**_ _ **shadosakushi  
\- ShadowDragon07  
\- xXChaoticOrderXx  
\- Antex-The Legendary Zoroark**_

 _Now I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and stay tuned for the next update :D_


	4. Memoir IV: Spirit of Gold

_**Mermoir IV:**_

 _Spirit of Gold_

* * *

I'm tumbling down a grassy field the instant I fall onto the ground that appears beneath me. Green trees and blue skies flash through my eyes as I roll downhill but I can't focus on one given image until my fall is literally broken by my crashing against a tree. A groan escapes me as I lay against the trunk, my legs ending up in the air while my back rests against the ground.

Turning over so I can sit and I rub my sore back, I take a garner around the world we're at now. It's very vibrant with trees reaching high into the sky and miles and miles of grass everywhere I look. Overhead is the blue skies I saw passing by as I tumbled and they at least tell me we have some daylight hours to work with and figure out what to do now that we're here.

...we.

 _Oh, that's right._

My eyes dart around searching for Akio when I realize I'd forgotten about him after conveniently dragging him behind me and losing him during my fall. The groans hear some feet away lead me to where he is and I get up, dusting myself as I go, to walk over to him. Akio's barely sitting up when I get to him.

I greet him with a grin and reach out my hand to help. "Sorry about that. Didn't think we'd go down a hill this steep."

Instead of taking it though, he ignores me and stands up by himself as he brushes off the dirt and grass from his cloak. That annoys me to no end but I try my best to keep my growing anger down by reminding myself that civility needs to take priority if we're to work together. Blowing me off for a second, Akio looks around before turning to me.

"Do you have any idea of where we are?" he asks.

I lift my finger ready to answer until I realize I have nothing to say. _Rin?_

" _I have no record of this world, Master,"_ she tells me quickly. _"All these worlds could very well be uncharted territory for the both of you."_

Defeated, I shake my head at him which only makes him sigh heavily. "But, that's besides the point," I call out, pointing upwards to the sky. "It's still morning. We need to find a place to stay before night falls." Akio's aloof expression and raised eyebrow makes me frown. "What?"

His eyes suddenly sharpen like when they do when he's fighting and he shushes me before saying, "Do you hear that?"

I lower my head and clear my mind to focus on the noises around. No matter how much I concentrate, though, I hear nothing out of the ordinary. "Hear what?"

All at once, his expression changes back to the aloofness of before and I suddenly remember why he annoys me so much. "The sound of the village or inn that's nowhere near here that you want us to find, that's what."

His overly dramatic and idiotic comment makes me fume. Civility all but forgotten, my foot stomps on the ground and I shout after him, which he promptly ignores as he walks away in whatever direction he pleases.

" _Calm down, Master. You can't let him get to you."_ Rin's words let me relax a bit and put some sense back in my head. But only some.

 _He's being an ass. I'm trying to be helpful here._

" _Yes, but he doesn't see it that way. I believe you two are just loads to carry for one another. So long as you wear those bracelets, that is."_

That reminder makes me glance down to my wrist where that engraved golden piece of junk is tightly wound. Taking a deep breath, I forget about both the bracelet and his sour attitude before following behind him. Sad as it is, wherever he goes I follow, and although I think the reverse is true as well, I feel like he's not in the best of moods to listen to anything I have to say. His sarcastic answer from before tell me now. Even after we spend hours of walking to find nothing but trees, he's in no better mood to talk.

We eventually find a river that we start following down, hoping to find something before it got dark. Regrettably, night starts to fall before we can find any place to stay for the night. We should probably stop and camp for the night is what I'm thinking. Akio, though, doesn't seem to want to stop. But I'm done being pulled by my chain. I ain't gonna go with his hissy fit any longer.

"Akio." He ignores me and keeps walking. "Akio." Nothing. Finally pissed, I take a deep breath and shout at the top of my lungs, "Aki, you shithead!"

"What did call me!" he finally shouts as he turns to glare at me.

He doesn't get a reply to that question. I just stand a few feet away from him and tap my foot, annoyed, before speaking. "Unless you think we're gonna find a place to stay in the next few minutes, I suggest we camp for the night."

"We don't have the luxury or time. We need to find what we came for."

"We do if you don't want to be caught tired or off guard by whatever inhabits this world." A scoff leaves me as I fold my arms over my chest. "Forget the inhabitants. If that memory led us here, then that means that the likelihood of Nightmares being here is high. We can't be caught off guard during the night when we are less likely to see or hear them." My words seem to take a minute to sink in but when they finally do, his shoulders slack as he turns to the forest near the riverbend.

"I'll gather some wood for a fire. Can you clear the space for us?"

That he asked so nicely lifts my spirits a bit, so I give him a smile and nod before we go our separate ways. The night sure is dark around here. That's what I notice as I clear the ground from rocks and other debris for us to lay on. The moonlight barely reached where we decided to camp and the forest beyond is as pitch black as could be. The unknown beyond that makes me shiver a bit. The noise of wood smacking against each other catches my attention and I turn to see Akio return with a pile in his arm.

"Cleaned it up pretty good, huh? What ya think?" I ask as he throws the pile in the middle and begins to stack them. He ignores me again and this time I can't help but sigh in frustration.

Out of the blue, Rin's voice comes to me as she asks, _"Not to be imprudent but how come you're being nicer to him?"_

 _He may be an ass now but he wasn't always._

Apparently, Akio used to be that boy that we saw in those memories. Something happened to him to make him so jaded. I want to know what and most importantly why. And there's no way to find that out if I can't break through his defenses first. But he appears to be rock solid where that's concerned. He doesn't speak to me at all, at least not when he doesn't have to. And that chance only comes around when I either annoy him or he needs to order me around.

"Use your magic to light the fire."

 _See?_

" _I do,"_ she replies, _"But then, being that as you say, why attempt to do so at all? Why when knowing or not does not aid you in your quest?"_

Because...just because it doesn't concern me doesn't mean it doesn't matter. If Haruka and Sora taught me anything was that helping whenever we can matters more than anything they could do to help us. I've been on the receiving end of distrust and have distrusted people all the same. So even when I know that it could be dangerous to, I want change a little and give him the benefit of the doubt. And I'm trying to apply that lesson here.

 _Which means having lots of patience with this idiot._

With that in mind, I take Ares out and expand it with one hit against the ground. Just as I'm about to cast the spell, a deep, guttural noise catches my attention, one that comes from the pitch blackness of the forest. When Akio starts telling me about the fire again, I shush him quickly and lift my eyes towards the forest that lays behind him. He frowns but doesn't berate me again and instead slowly begins to turn to where I'm looking. Before he can fully do so, though, a loud snapping noise rings through, the birds flying off from the disturbance, a second before I see a couple of shadows fly overhead followed by large boulders flying after them from the general direction of the noise. We both follow their trajectory and while we're distracted, I hear that guttural noise from before and this time a thunderous roar comes after it.

"Akio, watch out!"

My warning comes too late. A glint of gold catches my eye a second before a large animal bursts through the forest. Its roars as it lunges out from behind him and its claws catch Akio when it uses him as a perch to gather momentum to chase after something.

The pain I feel this time is instant unlike before and is right on my shoulder. Worried, I call out and run to Akio as he lays on the floor. After assuring myself the injury isn't life threatening, I hold Ares at the ready to attack the golden beast that came out of nowhere if it dares attack us again. When I turn towards it, though, it's simply standing there, looking at me.

Now that the moonlight hits it better, I can see that this animal isn't any normal animal. It's all golden in color and a dragon at that. But the insignia on its forehead and upper face, covering his eyes, tells me different. It's a Spirit. This thing is a Ryu Dragon. There's a standstill between us as we look at each other but before I can do anything, it's wings twitch behind it and it hunches lower to the ground. It's not until a few moments later that I hear the muffled voices coming from where it came from. When I realize it's the voices of other people approaching, the Ryu Dragon seems to perceive the same thing and sprints off, disappearing into the dark of the forest to follow the trial of the other two that had flown through the night sky.

My hands instantly fumble to put Ares aside as my attention comes back to Akio and my own surmounting pain. I reach out to his shoulder as he holds it tightly with his left hand and when I touch it, he flinches and groans in pain. The warm liquid that seeps through my fingers threatens to send me into a panic but I calm down as best as I can to work through it.

"It's me," I whisper, wanting him to relax and let me treat him. "Akio, it's Aya. Just, calm—"

I don't get to finish my sentence. A group of bulky men break through the forest with weapons at the ready towards us from the direction the golden Spirit came from. They give me little time to react. I can't reach Ares when my mind rushes to secure Akio first and it leaves us both vulnerable as they glare down at us with weapons aimed.

The largest man in the group—a massive oaf with a metal helmet with horns and lots of ginger hair—stares down at us intimidatingly at first before his brow furrows in confusion. He sways his massive axe at me before asking, "Where did they go?"

"Who?" I ask as I hold Akio closer to me at the clear threat.

"The dragons, lass, the dra—" His anger leaves his face the moment he lays eyes on Akio injured and groaning as he was. "The beast attacked you."

It wasn't a question. Merely the statement of a fact. I answer him anyway with a nod. "It jumped out of the trees and clawed him."

A blond mustached man, just as burly but some feet shorter than the ginger, steps forward. It's only then that I notice that the axe he's holding isn't on his left hand. It's in place of his left hand. "Stoick, the dragons fled already. Chasing 'em into the night is useless."

Another man came up to the one they referred to as Stoick, a man that still held us at axe point, and only added another weapon to the pointing contest. "What do we do with them, chief?"

It's not until he's asked that that Stoick turns to me. "Who are ye?"

"Nomads." Instantly, I feel the burning in my eyes as my Deceiving Eyes activate. Rin gives me a warning at the back of my mind and I take it to mind as I weave the lie as quickly as I can. "We got robbed on our travels. We didn't think we'd be attacked by dragons now of all times."

"Ye thought wrong." He holds his stand for another second before putting his axe away and nodding at us to his men. "Bring 'em back with us."

"Stoick," the blond speaks up seemingly confused. "They're kids."

"Aye, I'm aware." He walks forward and bypasses me to take Ares in his hand and put it in a pouch of his. "But they're harmless. You lot carry the injured lad. Gobber, watch the lass."

Before two of them can get to us, I hold Akio closer, my arms holding his upper body against me protectively, and glare at Stoick who seems to be their leader. "How I can be sure you won't attack us?"

"Lass, we could've killed ye the moment ye left yer weapon to protect him. But that ye decided to guard him instead of yerself shows bravery. Or stupidity. All the same, kids are kids. I won't have yer blood on me hands." With that said, he barks his orders again and leaves towards the trees presumably going back to where they came from.

One of the men reach down and grab Akio by his legs before the other reaches to his waist. Both pull up and I let go reluctantly. As they carry him, I sprint up to be as near to them and Akio as I can but a large hand grabs me by my forearm and makes me snarl at the blond mustached man that holds me back. He frowns and smacks me upside the head with the blunt side of his axe. Forgetting about being vicious, I rub at the back of my head where a small bump beings to form.

"No barking, lass. We ain't going to harm yer friend. Now go." He lets go to push me forward and leaves me to walk behind the men and Akio as he—I believe his name was Gobber—follows behind me.

The walk they take us in takes about thirty minutes and by the end of it, I find that we've reached the outskirts of a village. And as we trek through the village, it's perplexing me that they're so many people out and about this late at night. They're running about fixing houses, clearing debris, or putting out fires that had been started a short while ago by the looks of it. My mind connects the dots by the time we enter a large building that turns out to be barracks. The place was attacked fairly recently—as in a few minutes ago, maybe—and I had the slight suspicion that the dragons that they were chasing from before had something to do with it.

It makes sense.

I notice then that even when inside and clearly warmed by the many hearths around that I'm chilling to the bone. I can't even keep my teeth from chattering. Not only that but despite not even walking a mile, I'm exhausted to the point that I can almost swear I'd faint. The pain on my shoulder has only become worse the more time has gone by as well and that tells me that Akio's injury must be really bad to be getting worse this fast.

The thought becomes more focused on my head when I see them lay Akio down in one of the many beds. Without clearing it out with Gobber first, I run up to Akio to check on him. He's passed out and as I run my hand across his forehead, brushing his dark red hair back, it's obvious that he's sweating profusely. Being closer makes me realize too just how shallowly he's breathing. The problem is obvious with his and my symptoms combined.

He's losing too much blood. It's why I feel cold and weak, why he's pale and breathing heavily.

I reach out to his shoulder, intent to treat him, when a hand grabs me by my shoulders and, to my utter shock and bewilderment, easily lifts me from my spot to literally move me aside. Glancing behind my soldier, I see Stoick as he puts me down in front of him with his hands on my shoulders to keep me in place. He'd done that to let a couple of women that, although as large as the men, were still delicate and gentle enough with how they were treating Akio's injury.

"They'll bandage the lad. Ye best stay out their way." Stoick lifts his hands from my shoulders before he looks down at me. "Now, lass, mind telling me yer name?"

Even with how weak I feel, I stand my ground and brave through. "You first."

"I offer hospitality and help this is—"

"I am grateful. Don't confuse that with stupid, though," I quickly correct him. "You guys are better armed than I am at the moment and you have my friend at your mercy. And I thank you for helping but I'll admit I'm apprehensive as well. I might be more inclined to listen if you tell me where we are and who are you first?"

His expression matches his namesake for a brief instant before he breaks out into a scoff. "My name is Stoick the Vast. This village is Berk and I am it's chieftain." He waves dismissively at me after that. "Yer name, lass. And the lad's as well."

"I'm Aya. He's Akio."

He lifts a skeptical eyebrow at hearing that. "And ye say ye herald from the north?"

"For a while." It's obvious that our names gave him enough doubt to ask that which means that I need to correct my lie. Sucks for him that that's my forte. "Like I said, we're nomads. We've traveled a lot. Up north was our last stop before we started south." Wanting to change the subject as I overhear some of the other people in the barracks mumbling about the animals, I glance up at Stoick who's clearly several feet taller than me—at least five—making me bend my neck back to face him properly. "This dragon problem, you guys been having it for long?"

To my shock and amusement, it isn't Stoick who answers but Gobber. "Oh yeah. Been like this e'er since Berk's founding. Then again those monsters have been making it even worse for us, too." He butts himself into our conversation as he swaps the axe from his hand to a cup of some kind. The action makes me chuckle but I quickly cover my mouth with my hand when the chief gives me a peeved glare. Ignoring me, he turns to Gobber and like me, he simply clears his throat to deviate the attention from his mishap.

His butting in makes it a bit less awkward for me to speak. His chattiness seems infectious. "What kind of monsters?" When Stoick raises another eyebrow at me, I shrug my shoulders and grin. "We've encountered our handful of monsters during our travels. It's just curiosity."

After a minute of silence, he appears to believe me enough to give me some more detail. This world where Berk is has had its own problem with dragons for a long time. But it seems like Dream Eaters have only been attacking recently. Some of them look like dragons apparently and they mimic their behavior of taking their livestock, and although they're easier to kill, they appear in greater numbers than the real dragons do.

" _It's understandable with the circumstances."_

I figured as much too. Yen Sid did say that the Dream Eaters were a product of dreams. Whether they were Spirits or Nightmares depended on whose dreams they originated from. If the world is manifesting the Dream Eaters in its sleep then it'd be safe to say that the dreams of the world's inhabitants counted as well. And living in fear of constant attacks by dragons would surely bring nightmares to the bravest of men, I'm sure.

"But ye ain't gotta worry about 'em in here." Gobber smacks my back after he approached me without my knowledge while I was mulling away and makes me take several steps forward from them hit. "You and the lad are safe here. Right, Stoick?"

"Yes." That he answers so readily leaves me skeptical and I lift my head to look at him. My apprehension may be a tad bit too obvious since he chuckles when he sees me looking his way. "Don't worry, little lass. We won't harm ye. We may be vikings but, like I said, blood of kids on me hands isn't what I want. I'll allow ye to stay in Berk as a guest, yer friend, too. Ye'll be fed and given shelter. In exchange—" The hint of the bargain he suddenly threw my way makes me cautious about him all over again as he reaches a hand into his pouch. I relax a bit, though, when I see that he picks Ares out and holds it out in front of me. My eyes switch between Ares and him before he speaks again. "Ye fight if we're attacked."

"Ye asking the lass to fight dragons?" Gobber chortles and it's annoying that he's underestimating me like that.

"I can fight," I assure them both as I grab one end of Ares while Stoick keeps his hold on the other. "Since you've been so hospitable to both of us, I have no reason to deny you that request. So I'll help with what I can."

Stoick nods solemnly and promptly releases Ares. With it back in my possession, I put it away on its holster. As soon as I do, my stomach rumbles rather loudly. Damn, I'd forgotten we didn't get the chance to eat before.

This however only makes the two of them laugh loudly. If this is how everyone is around here then it's going to get old and irritating really fast.

"Gobber, take 'er to the grand hall. The last of supper should still be being served."

Snickering, Gobber bumps my shoulder to follow him as he starts walking away. Anxiety strikes me and makes me look behind me to where the women are still treating Akio. He assures me that he's in good hands but that does little to quell my fears. What does in the end, though, is how I feel. I hadn't noticed but as we talked and the women treated him, I began to feel a bit warmer, my exhaustion is milder compared to before, and although it aches, my shoulder feels better too.

And if I'm stable, then he's getting better too.

"We stitched the wound." I cringe at hearing the woman say that. Maybe that's why I'm sore too. "He's lucky. He lost a lot of blood but he's hanging in there."

"When will he wake up?"

The other woman's lips purse, mulling over her answer. "It'll take some time. He needs his rest, that's for sure. He's out of the woods, though, we're sure of that."

That and my own assurance with the dumb bracelet makes me release a hefty sigh of relief. Gobber pats my back more gently than the times before and nods away towards the door.

"Ye starving over him won't help. Let's get ye somethin' to eat, lass."

I give Akio a last glance before nodding and following behind the chatty viking. The barracks seem some ways from the hall where he's taking me and all the way there, Gobber talks nonstop about everything and anything. Thankful that I don't have to talk, though, I listen, giving a couple of nods to show that I am. At least this way, I don't have to come up with more lies or worse, use my masks.

" _I doubt they would work, Master."_ Rin's comment makes my mind drift from Gobber's nonsensical talk to her.

 _What do you mean?_

" _Stoick the Vast did question you much about your lies."_

I didn't use my masks, though. Those lies were half-assed at best. Even I would question myself if I heard them. And besides, only those aware of my powers or those who can muster the willpower are capable of seeing through them. Maleficent said so and if there's one thing I remember about that witch, it's that.

" _Even so, I suggest being careful. It is not impossible that, as strong willed as these people are due to their environment, your powers may be diminished in Berk. Tread with caution, Master."_

 _Duly noted._

Dinner is given to me swiftly and I finish it like it's my last because of how beaten my body feels from injuries it didn't even sustain. That's saying something. These bracelets sure are powerful.

Gobber stays with me—for company or to watch me, I don't know—and chats my ears away about a lot of Berk's history and the current battle with the dragons. With winter coming, it seems that them losing their livestock to the dragons was the biggest problem there was. The only thing they could do was fight them away for now. At least that's what he told me. From the looks of it, though—all the quiet whispers of searching for some 'den' or 'nest' and what not—there might be something else that they're planning for to rid themselves of their scaly problems.

Once I'm done, Gobber escorts me back to the barracks and to Akio who's now resting rather peacefully with a woman taking guard. We eye each other until we get there and she stands up to speak to Gobber. This thankfully leaves me to go and check on Akio. They stripped him from his coat and shirt to treat him. I'm not bothered by his lack of his clothes but when I see the stitched up wound, I cringe. It's probably my whole hand's length, from fingertip to bottom of my palm, and although it looks pinkish and fresh, the fact that he's sleeping soundly with a wet cloth on his forehead gives me some relief.

"A'ight, lass." I turn away from Akio to Gobber who now stood alone with the woman having left without me knowing. He brushes his mustache with his actual hand as he speaks, "Ye will be staying 'ere with yer friend. Someone'll come for ye in the morning to get food again."

A nod is all I give him and that's reassuring enough for him, I suppose. He leaves me there in the dimly lit barracks for the night. Although they're not empty—there's a handful of people here by the looks of it—it's big enough for me to have some semblance of privacy. There's no reason for me to sleep right now so I just sit on the bed next to Akio's and watch over him. My eyes wander to the outside from time to time as I watch the moon high above in the sky.

Berk seemed so much more different than any of the other worlds I've visited in the past. Although Quasi's world did as well, this one appears even stranger and it leaves a bad feeling in me. The fact that I've seen neither hair nor hide of Sora or Riku like I did in Traverse Town or Quasi's world doesn't help either.

" _I concur."_

"There's something different about this place, isn't there?" I whisper quietly to myself and to Rin as I watch the starlit sky outside and bite my thumbnail.

" _From what I have garnered, yes. However, with what limited information you possess, I cannot decipher why or how so exactly."_

"What's the preliminary, though."

" _Some kind of energy."_

"Describe it."

" _It's reminiscent of that beast you fought in Cite de Cloches. The dark one that manifested at the cathedral and infected the Nightmares."_

"So what I thought wasn't far off," I say, thinking back on those Dream Eaters and on how much more vicious they had been compared to those I saw Sora and Riku fight. "There's something causing them to be even worse. You say it's that thing?"

" _I cannot say for sure but there does appear to be a correlation. Further data is needed to make any concrete conclusion."_

And getting data meant actually interacting with those things. As far as I can tell, those Nightmares were bad news and the 'thing' even worse but at least meeting it led us to one of Thea's relics. Perhaps there's also some connection between them and the other Ayano's memories as well.

" _Possibly. But, as I said—"_

"You need more data," I say along with her.

"I thought you were crazy before. Now I know for sure that you're insane."

The comment annoyed me at first until I realized that it'd been Akio who spoke. Sprinting off the bed, I trot over to him as he attempts to sit up. When he groans using his other arm to push himself up, I push him back against the bed with little effort.

"Don't," I warn him. "They stitched you back together a couple of hours ago and said that it'd be best for you to rest up and let it heal."

"We don't have time to waste." Stubborn as he's turned out to be, Akio manages to sit up and throws his legs over the edge of the bed. As he does this, the glint of something catches my eye as it falls against his bare chest. It's a necklace—a simple black leather and attached to it is a crystal of some sorts that's oddly shaped. It isn't any larger or longer than the palm of my hand but I can't make any certain shape out of it except that it's kind of pointy. Like a tiny crystal blade of some sorts. When he looks about for a few moments, it brings my attention back to him. He keeps looking around until he finds his clothes, grabbing his shirt to work on putting it back on as he continues. "We need to search this place and find whatever is going to get us out of here."

I give him a droll stare that clearly peeves him. Good. "You can barely put your shirt on without grimacing, big boy. You can't search for shit without being a nuisance."

"I'll de—augh! What the hell?" He smacks my hand away from his injured shoulder the second I lay it there and squeeze.

There's no helping the grin that comes over me as I prove my point. "If that hurt, I'm not taking you with me." When he's about to complain about it again, I cover my ears and start talking to myself. He may be stubborn but two can play that game. And I know how to ignore people better than he does.

But something else comes over his bickering and my nonsense, I let my hands fall from my ears and turn outside towards the window again. This time instead of seeing the night sky, I see bright reflections of red and gold dancing against the windowpane, lighting the forests and houses outside in crimson.

The word is out of me before I realize. "Fire."

Hearing me, Akio's brow furrows until he follows my line of sight. It isn't until he sees what I see that his widen as well. Mine do too when I start hearing the screams and shouts from before getting louder and louder. And beyond the terrorized voices, I overhear something else. There's load roaring and then explosions as more flames erupt into the sky.

"It's the dragons." Akio raises his voice to question me but I don't answer. All I do is reach over to my bed and grab Ares before running towards the outside. I take one glance over my shoulder towards him before I reach the doors, "Stay here!"

Shoving the heavy double doors of the barracks to give way, I'm met with a harrowing scene of flames and screaming people on the ground while the dragons soar above in the sky with sheep tightly held in their talons. Not waiting to act, I jog over to where buckets of water are being given out and start helping put out fires.

A shove gets me to look behind me as a scrawny boy runs past me while pushing some kind of carted contraption ahead of him. I see his face briefly as he turns and stutters an apology before sprinting as fast as he can away, many others annoyed and confused at him receiving the same treatment. Seeing him though, makes me take a closer look at my surroundings.

It's then that I notice the group of children that could be my age helping around. Two blond kids, a boy and girl, struggle over a bucket and drop all the water before getting anywhere near the fires. Another boy who struggles to run with the bucket in hand because of his heaviness manages to put out a small fire but screams when another bursts out from the nearby house. A young brute manages to help put out another house and somehow manages to get smoke into his smirking face as it escapes the building. Only a young blonde seems to be capable to handle the struggle as she competently goes back and forth alongside myself to get more water for the fires.

By the looks of it only the kids and a handful of others are helping put out fires. The rest are running after the dragons in a haste to stop them from taking more livestock or catch those who already have. But as they bring down the dragons, I start noticing the dark portals that start opening nearby as Yoggy Rams and Tatsu Blazes appear, adding more fuel to the flames.

"No, you don't," I grunt, dropping my bucket to take out Ares and extend it. Tapping the end once, I put out the war hammer before I start at the handful of Nightmares that appear. I'm quick to notice that I have to be careful because of the magic they're capable of.

 _Fire magic. Why out of all the possible ones did they have to use fire magic?_

I hate it and how vulnerable I am to it. And as I parry off a Yoggy Ram as it runs directly at me, I notice a couple of Testu Blazes that charge up their attack, red embers charging at their snouts. I can't react as fast as I want to, and by the time I jump out of the way, the fire magic is shot at me. To my utter shock, a curved surface appears out of the blue, acting as a shield, and blocks the fireballs before they even reach me. A light at the corner of my eyes flashes but no matter how I try to, I can't see it. It's just behind me, on my head—

" _It's Haruka's gift. It's appears to have some protection spell cast on it, Master."_

The corners of my lips lift at hearing that. Even when we're apart, the kid's still got my back. Readying Ares, I throw away my inhibitions knowing that Haruka's gift has got me protected and unleash my all against the Nightmares. I pop them out of existence one after another. All the while I do this I notice that none of them have red eyes like the ones back in Cite de Cloches.

These aren't infected. That makes my job a hundred times easier. They might be numerous, but their quantity won't beat my quality. It takes me a few minutes but I eventually clear them out and just as I do, I overhear a deep voice calling out in the open.

"Hiccup! Hiccup! Where's Hiccup?" It's Stoick and he sounds frantic as he asks Gobber this. My eyes scan the children that are here and take a mental count: twins A and B, brute, big guy, blondie…

Scrawny isn't here. Those six were the only kids I saw running around. And I think I know the direction of where I saw him run off to. My mind reels, thinking that there's plenty of people helping here. I've gotten rid of the Nightmares that could've made it worse, so the fires should be under control soon enough. My help isn't really needed here anymore.

 _Why the hell not?_

Curiosity wins me over then as I leave and follow the way the scrawny boy went. The further I get from the village, though, the darker the path gets. Even with knowing the general direction, I can't track where he actually went without seeing the ground. Before I can even find my way to him again though, a sharp noise makes me turn up towards the sky. Something flies through the sky, a bolas, I think. I don't see it's target or even if it hit or not, but I do hear a yelp followed by a terrible screech that echoes and dwindles the further it travels. Even when I intend to follow and see what exactly that was, an explosion from behind me takes my attention.

My mind is split between the two. That thing shot at something but the explosion below was definitely at the village, though. Between the two, I think I can easily tell which is most important to deal with at the moment. I know I promised to fight the dragons if they appeared but I think it's more important to safeguard the village they're trying to protect first.

My mind made up, I follow the path back to the village, set on helping the rest to put out what flames the explosion created anew.

=x-x-x=

Deep in the dark forests, the Night Fury struggled against the ropes that trapped it. It's teeth couldn't reach the tight ropes to gnaw at them and struggling only tightened the hold of the bolas around him. It screeched and roared in frustration, thrashing even more, but halted abruptly as his sensitive ears heard something. His attention focused to the shadows caused by the night, it's dark pupils dilate to take in the little light available and it's massive wings clung to its back as it readied itself to lunge at whatever approached it.

A deep growling came from the Night Fury's throat as from the shadows a dark entity lurked outwards into the moonlight. It was small in size, a little less than half of the dragon itself, but the Night Fury growled louder at seeing the creature manifest.

The tiny beast was dark with cracking skin whose crevices glowed a neon blue and a tuft of baby blue hair around its neck. From its head—cracked open like an egg with two longer horns at the front—blue fog flowed out like flames, thick and visible, as well as from it's long, thin tail that swept back and forth. It's beady eyes were red and unblinking and watched as it took methodical steps towards the Night Fury. What made the dragon itself react was that with each step it took, whatever it touched froze over in bright neon ice before turning completely black and breaking.

The tiny beast prowled towards the Night Fury, the great dragon warning it with its head low and giving off deeper and louder snarls. The Night Fury stumbled back as far as its bindings allowed it to from the beast that started to reach out with its tiny paw. Before the tiny beast could touch the dragon, it's head twitched a moment before it somersaulted back to avoid the golden Ryu Dragon that lunged from the side of the woods.

The dragon watched intently and quietly, as the Spirit snarled at the beast that skipped backwards as if afraid of the golden Dream Eater. When the Spirit took a step forward, the tiny beast startled and sprinted away, creating a patch of dry ice with every step that turned black and broke apart. Not wasting a second, the Spirit gave chase, leaving the Night Fury to its trap and own devices.

=x-x-x=

For once I thought that I could at least get some decent sleep. Lo and behold, I got woken up brusquely, though, thanks to the ruckus outside the barracks. Fixing myself after waking up, I walk out to see that many of the vikings are heading towards the docks armed to their teeth. They all look battle ready as I watch them pass by the door I close behind me. It's not until Stoick and Gobber walk by, the last ones actually, that I step in to ask what's happening.

Stoick gives me a glance before replying. "We're going to search for the dragon's nest. You will remain with Gobber and the kids."

That's all he says but it isn't much information. He deems it quite enough, though, and follows after his people. Gobber stays behind with me and thankfully explains a little more about the situation. "Things have gotten pretty bad. We need to hunt that nest down. But since the village can't be left unattended, I'm staying behind. 'Sides that, though, I got saddled with training a bunch of new recruits too."

"Train?" I repeat a bit confused.

"For dragon training." Gobber shrugs then as he fixes his eyes over the docks where the ships are just preparing to leave. "But that's for tomorrow. Ye're free to join if ye want. I'd advise it, really." He chuckles and fixes his belt and pants, lifting them. "Ye're a good fighter, lass. You beat those monsters like a seasoned viking would a dragon. But monsters and dragons are different. That's somethin' ye should learn if ye're going to fight them."

"I'm a better learner when I watch if you don't mind." He doesn't appear to like my answer but nods, insisting that I give it a try some other time then. I'm glad that at least he's lenient with me where that's concerned. Gobber is by far the one person that's the most approachable. That's refreshing, too, when all I've had to talk to this whole journey is Rin and an insufferable asshole.

The day is pretty quiet after that. I stay behind in the barracks with Akio as he wakes up from time to time from the medicine they gave him. It's obvious he's still in pain by how nasty the wound still looks and by how I can't get the aching to leave my own even after the whole day goes by. He's stopped being so vocal about wanting to leave, though, saying that he'll take the chance to heal properly. Seems like seeing the chaos from last night reminded him what we're up against here and that he needs to be in his best shape for it.

Because there's no one there anymore to take care of his wound, we both work willingly together for the first time to change the bandages on his shoulder. He whines a whole lot about wanting me to be more careful but I ignore him gleefully, calling him a baby before tying it off. Despite the circumstances, though, I never once hear a 'thank you' when I help him with that or when I bring him food. Since he's gotten to resting after meals, I take the chance that evening to go to the grand hall by myself. Gobber told me before that Akio and I were welcomed to go there if we wanted. Akio didn't seem to like the idea of people much which is how I ended up being the nice one and bringing him the food. But just because he doesn't appreciate human contact, doesn't mean I don't either. I take the offer for dinner that night and enter finding it dimly lit and rather bleak and desolate with only the few villagers that were left behind.

After I get my food, I look around the tables to find a place I like. Most of them are empty which would be good enough for me but the rowdiest one takes my attention and I find the bunch of kids from before there. On another table, I also notice the scrawny boy—Stoick's son, if I recall correctly.

I kind of want to know more about this world and its dragon problem. That the kids are being trained tomorrow tells me that they know much about their enemies already, and since Hiccup doesn't seem the social type, I decide to head for the table where the others are at. Before I even take a step out, though, I call out to Rinto.

 _Mind helping me out here for a bit?_

I hear her soft chuckle at the back of my mind. _"I thought you were sociable now."_

 _I said that in comparison to Akio. He may be a potato socially but I'm more of a...sweet potato._

" _Do explain."_

 _I'm appetizing until you take that first bite and you realize I'm actually even worse than the potato. Using you, they never get the chance to take the first bite_.

She laughs again but I feel the slight burning in my eyes as my friendliest mask comes over me. _"I'm inclined to agree."_

"Hello. Mind if I take a seat here?" Five pairs of eyes turn to look at me from the table as each of them strays away from their food. The silence lasts only a moment and before long there's much bickering amongst them as they try deciding whether or not I'm to be trusted.

It's the blonde girl that nods at the seat across from her next to the chubbier boy. I offer her a small smile as thanks before taking the seat.

"So, cutie, you from around these parts?" The tough, wannabe guy speaks up from over his food just as I start eating mine.

"Not really. My friend and I are from different places and travel together is all." There's no reason for me to be rude when I want information from them. No matter how much I dislike his awful approach.

"I heard that you came from up north," the chubbier one says apparently very enthused about talking to me. "The ice's set there already, hasn't it?"

"A little," I lie. We didn't land far from Berk by the looks of it but whatever winter was to said to cover their island in ice was apparently still far north. But a little urgency won't hurt and might actually motivate them in their training. "It's still ways from reaching Berk's vicinity, though."

"Of course, of course," he replies with food in his mouth. He swallows it and stretches out a greasy hand. "My name is Fishlegs. I saw you fighting last night and it was amazing. Who taught you how to fight? What kind of weapon was the one you use? Did you build it yourself?"

"Thanks. A bunch of different people. It's a staff. And no, it was a gift from an acquaintance." Taking a couple of bites of my own food, I wait till I'm done with it before taking out Ares and placing it in the middle of the table for him to look at.

"Can I?" he asks giddily with his fingers hovering over the metal.

His fingers are on it before my head even raises from my nod. It's hard to swallow fast enough so that I can warn him, "Be careful, though, it ex—" Ares extends into a full staff parallel to the table, thankfully hitting no one, and startles all of them before I finish my sentence. A small smile escapes me as I sight through my nose. "It extends."

"That's cool. But it's not as cool as a knife or an axe!" the twin boy exclaims, stabbing his fork onto the table. It bounces back at him, though, and hits him in squarely on his face.

"That thing changed, though. Didn't you see how she smashed those monsters into the ground like nothing!" the twin girl berates him as she laughs at his misfortune.

"It's a strange weapon," the other blonde points out. Her skepticism hits me with the tone of her voice.

"I'm more of a nimble fighter and this lets me maximize that. But I do opt for brute force sometimes." As Fishlegs is balancing Ares in his hands to check its craftsmanship, I tap it down against the table to make the war hammer sprout which makes it fall to one side. Lifting it from the hammer and making the opposite end tap on the other side of the table where the twins are, the hammer disappears while on that end, the spike of a spear comes out.

Cries of awe erupt from their loving Ares' arsenal. The blonde still is very wary of me by how unimpressed she appears and this brings a grin to my face.

 _I like her._

" _How so?"_ Rin asks seemingly curious at my remark.

 _Because she's cautious about me. Like she should be. She's smart or at the very least aware of her surroundings. And that means that she'll be the best source of information for me._

Now that I have my goal, I stretch out my hand towards her. "I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Ayano. Aya for short. My buddy that's knocked out at the barracks and currently out of commission is Akio. He's rude and stubborn but means well."

Somewhere deep, deep, _deeeeeeep_ down.

She stares at my outstretched hand for a second and speaks but refuses to shake my hand. "Astrid."

The brute from before is the one that does take my hand to shake it. When my eyes meet his, he winks. "The name is Snotlout. Number one dragon killer in training."

"Yeah, right!" the blonde twin calls out pushing Snotlout away and undoing the handshake just as I withdraw my hand. "The idiot here is my brother, Tuffnut, and I'm—"

Her brother pushes her face down onto the table to shut her up and takes up from there. "The snot licking girl here's my sister, Ruffnut, and I'm—" The blonde, Ruffnut, goes onto pull at her brother's hair to get him off of her and the cycle repeats. They keep interrupting each other but manage to introduce one another in the process. The bickering is amusing but when I try attaching their names to their faces, a scrawny one in particular remains nameless.

I nod behind me to where he's sitting by himself. "And who's he?"

"Oh, that's Hiccup," Fishlegs provides when no one else did, "He's the chieftain's son."

'Stoick's?" I repeat, feigning surprise.

"Yeah, Mr. I-shot-a-Night-Fury-down." Snotlout scoffs and the joke apparently makes the twins laugh boisterously too.

Curious, I blink a couple of times before asking the question. "What's a Night Fury?" The table becomes silent out of the blue and I dread that I might've said something wrong. "W-What?"

"You don't know what a Night Fury is?" Astrid asks very much incredulous.

"I'm from a very far away land," I remind her, wanting to make a believable excuse. "This part of the world is quite different from where I come from."

Thankfully, Fishlegs turns out to be the dragon nerd I needed to dissuade the awkwardness away. "A Night Fury is one of the deadliest dragons in existence. Legend says that the dragon is the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself."

"Wow," I muse. "Sounds terrifying."

"It is!" Fishlegs exclaims, startling me a bit as he slams his hands against the table. "It's fast as the lightning that birthed him and just as deadly being able to shoot plasma unlike any other dragon."

"And Hiccup caught one?" I ask.

Laughter broke again across the table before Tuffnut works through his chortling to speak. "The only thing Hiccup caught is the bad luck that let those dragons from last night escape with the sheep."

"Yeah," Ruffnut agrees with a snort and chuckle, "and the chief's annoyance too."

Their snickers and belittlement continue as my thoughts drift. Even if I told them I saw the kid actually shoot something down, they wouldn't believe me. And besides that thing must be gone by now even if he managed to capture it if it's as ferocious as Fishlegs says. When I ask about more information about dragons, Fishlegs is quick to tell me about those they know of with the others giving their input about them.

Gronckles. Deadly Nadders. Hideous Zipplebacks. Monstrous Nightmares. The descriptions they give are consistent with the ones I saw attack the village the other night. They also tell and show me about others from a book that Fishlegs procures from nowhere. But in all that they tell me, one dragon in particular never comes up and that piques my interest.

"Are there any golden dragons?"

"Golden?" Astrid repeats to which I nod. She mulls over that before shaking her head. "There's never been any records of a golden dragon. Why?"

"No particular reason. I thought the one that attacked us before Stoick found us had been a gold dragon but I must have been mistaken." They're quick to dismiss me with that simple explanation but it gives me time to think.

 _No one has seen it then._

" _The Spirit that you saw?"_

 _The one that attacked Akio._ But that thought left a sour taste in my mouth. It sounded wrong. If I'm going to assume the Dream Eater was a Spirit from its insignia, then it shouldn't have been hostile towards us. It made things stranger and only addded more questions.

 _And I'm getting my answers._

 _=x-x-x=_

That night, just as the peak hour of the night hits and the moon is at its highest, I sneak out of the barracks and head towards the forests in the direction from where we were found.

" _This does not seem like a prudent idea, Master."_

"Prudent or not, I have know what was up with that Spirit. Yen Sid told us that those Dream Eaters were friendly creatures and would help us. I didn't make a mistake either. That insignia on its head was of a Spirit."

Now the only question I want an answer to is why. Why the hell was it hostile and attacked us?

Determined to get what I want, I use my masks to hide myself as best as I can and use the shadows to climb in and out through the canopy of the trees. When my feet start to wobble under the precarious ground after a while of searching, I hastened my pace towards the ground and land in a crouch.

"Have you figured out why I can't shadow step like I used to?"

" _I have no determining information as of yet. My best guess is that they were temporary powers granted by the experimentation done on you."_

I did wonder sometimes after Vexen gave me that potion whether I would ever lose it. Guess it lasted longer than either of us thought it would. "Is the marker running on time or usage?"

" _I cannot say for certain. At times it works and at others it doesn't. It also seems to be weakened by the passage of time. When it will completely expire is something I cannot calculate with all the variables present, though. I advise using it with caution if you do from now onwards."_

"Yeah, I think I wi— _ **AH!**_ "

There's no keeping the scream I let out from how scared I am when a hand grabs my shoulder. I spin with Ares at the ready and when I do, I hit whatever stands behind me. The moment that my arm begins hurting, though, I know exactly who it is. "Akio?"

His figure becomes clearer as my eyes adjust to the darkness behind me and he pushes Ares off. He rubs his uninjured arm from the strike I gave him before nodding. "Yeah, and I'd appreciate if you'd stop hurting me."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Quickly, I shake my head and instead say, "How did you find me?" A few miles separated the village from where we were and I made certain that I had covered all my bases so that no one would be able to follow me.

"I followed you."

 _Not all of them apparently._

His answer is curt and simple and it irks me to no end. He deviates those feelings of mine by asking a question of his own and changing the subject. "What are you doing out here by yourself?"

"Searching." Putting Ares away and back on its holster, I glance around to make sure we were alone and that no one had followed his sorry ass. "That dragon that attacked you the night we arrived at this world, I saw it."

"And?"

"It was a Spirit, Akio."

His brow furrows prominently at hearing that, his mercurial eyes catching the moonlight and shining with bewilderment at what that implicated and what I realized too. "A Spirit couldn't have."

"But it did and I know what I saw." Nodding my head towards the general direction that I'd been heading towards before he scared the hell out of me, I continue quite seriously. "So either that thing's rogue or it attacked you by accident."

There's a pause so brief that I almost think too much of it. What makes me actually put some thought in is the fact that he asks, "What makes you think the latter?"

I glance over my shoulder and see him guarding his healing shoulder as we walk, his gaze downcast as he watches where he steps. Facing back forward, I use Ares to push branches out of our way to clear our path. "Spirits attack Nightmares. Nightmares chase dreamers. And dreamers can conjure either of them. Maybe it got a whiff of that weird Dream Eater we fought at Cite de Cloches that somehow clung to us afterwards."

"Plausible." The way he says that makes me wary of him. It's like he's trying to suade my mind away from something else. What that something is, though, I can't fathom right now and he's rather quick to change the subject again. I keep this point at the back of my head for later, though. "But Spirits are guardians of dreams. Maybe it was chasing after some dreamer's nightmares."

I'm about to agree when the cracking of twigs and grass under footsteps makes us stop. We both hide behind the largest boulder we can find and crouch down before we peer over to find what startled us. Not far beyond from where we are is what appears to be a valley with a lake inside. What catches my attention to the other side of the valley is the flash of gold that appears in the dark as the moonlight hits it. Another movement crosses my sight and I realize, to my disgust and annoyance, that it's a horde of Nightmares heading into the valley. The mild glare of gold is visible for a split second before it dives down the valley and disappears out of our view.

My feet start running before I know it and before they take me beyond the valley's edge, Akio draws me back with a strong tug on Ares. It draws me back and onto a seat as he crouches besides me to overlook what's happening inside that valley. I don't bother complaining since I'm more focused instead on what the gold Spirit is doing.

It's the same Ryuu Dragon and its snarling at the horde of Nightmares that push him against a darkened corner of the valley. Because of its shiny exterior, the Spirit isn't lost even in the dark but what I failed to see before this is the dragon that blends so well in the darkness of shadows. Bright green eyes shine as the dragon starts moving and shows white, sharp teeth as it snarls by the Spirit's side, ready to attack.

The Nightmares waste no time and charge at the two creatures. In the blink of an eye and before I can even get down there, though, they're defeated as the dragon opens its mouth and shoots white plasma out that disintegrates most of them. The ones that are left that go for the golden Spirit end up being eaten up by it, its throat enlarged with the Nightmares it took up in one bite, before swallowing them whole and letting out a dust of gold at opening its mouth afterwards. The two creatures dealt with the number within a single moment. The two then look at each other as if talking amongst themselves for a brief moment before the golden Spirit flies away.

Akio pulls me back when the Spirit flies just feet away from us and towards the night sky. To his relief and my chragin, it didn't even notice us.

"Okay, I believe you're stupid gold Spirit theory. Now, let's go. If there are Nightmares out tonight then it's best that we head back."

"But the Spirit—"

"Is gone," he counters through gritted teeth as he pulls me up to my feet by the neck of my jacket. "But by the looks of it, so long as that dragon's there, it won't be going anywhere."

It sounded odd but I can't help but agree with what he said. The Spirit went down there after the Nightmares and what's more it protected the dragon. A dragon of pitch black capable of shooting white plasma that explodes at contact.

A spawn of lightning and death. That thing was a Night Fury. The description fit it to a tee. Why the hell was the Spirit protecting it then when it seemed more than strong enough to protect itself?

" _Spirits protect dreams, master. And when dreamers are in more danger than usual they persist their guard from the darkness of the nightmares."_

Then that begged another question. Just what kind of terrible Nightmare was the Spirit actually protecting the Night Fury from?

=x-x-x=

 _A/N:_

 _I'm so sorry. I made a promise about not doing what I did with the last installment and going on hiatus and did it anyway. I really am sorry. Thinks got crazy and I got more caught up with writing my other story for Magi. But now with that over, I'll be putting my whole attention to CoU._

 _This chapter may be short and a bit slow progress-wise but next time we'll delve deeper in Berk and the world of How to Train Your Dragon. For those of you who guessed Dreamworks for the worlds, you were right! I'll give a special cookie to those who can guess which other three worlds I'll be writing in the future. Hint: not Shrek. Also, sorry if the format bothers you and I'm saying this in reference to the line breaks. Sometimes they save on the doc and sometimes they don't so I fixed it however I could._

 _Anyway. I'll leave things here for now since it's been a long time. Again sorry for the long wait but I'm here to finish this now. I'm hoping to maybe write the next chapter before the year ends, but if I don't I wish you all Happy Holidays and an even Happier New Year's. May 2018 be better than the shit wreck we had in 2017. And may it treat you all kindly and with lots of love. Take this as an early Christmas present. One long overdue._

 _Hope you enjoyed it and stay tuned for the next update!_


	5. Memoir V: Understanding a Friend

_**Memoir V:**_

 _Understanding a Friend_

* * *

Dragon training looks hard as hell. That much is obvious the more I observe the little vikings undergo Gobber's hands-on training. And the fact that he's so upfront about him having no qualms with putting them in danger makes me laugh. I knew I liked him for a reason.

But man, dragons are no joke. Grunkles are little idiots that hit like mountains and spit pretty bits of fire themselves. Nadders are damn agile as well. That obstacle course didn't stop it from searching for the kids and those spikes are good projectiles for long range combat. The zipplebacks are double the trouble and I find their abilities quite intriguing. Observing their training for the past week definitely has given me plenty of material to work with whenever I get back on crafting weapons.

 _Ares could use some tweaks here and there. Don't you think so?_

" _After a year, perhaps an upgrade would be best, yes."_

Her agreeing makes me smile but that disappears when I see Akio coming to stand beside me. After a week, he's able to get up and walk around the village and join me for dinner sometimes. Regrettably and to his noticeable chagrin, he has to wear a sling to help his arm and so that his wound can heal completely. According to Gobber, it'd take another week and a half or so but suggested that he wait another two just to be sure. Akio hated that he couldn't use his arm. And Mr. Glum-and-Dumb's face, over here, definitely showed his annoyance even as he watched the kids train.

"That fog, is it poisonous?"

"Flammable," I explain to him, my eyes going back to watch the same green smog screen that hides the kids and the Zippleback. "One head produces the gas, the other ignites it."

Akio lets out a whistle. "How adept."

"They all seem to be." Even when I don't know if he understood the underlying statement, I blanket both the dragons I've seen the kids fight and the one we saw in the forest with those words. That Night Fury has been in my head for the past week; him and that Spirit.

Wanting to keep my head away from that and pay attention, I try focusing by telling Akio what I've learned watching. It's after I'm done that he asks, "And you haven't joined them?"

"I learn better when I watch others." I hadn't lied when I said that to Gobber. I've always been a visual learner. Not only that but I can study people better when not under pressure as well which is what this allowed me to do. "Wouldn't think it's too hard to fight one, though. I mean, we've fought Nightmares, haven't we? Dragons can't be that much harder."

"Different creatures, different rules. They could very well kick your ass if you're not prepared."

"I think they'd kick yours much faster than mine in the state you're in," I reply with a chuckle.

"Uh huh." The lackluster response, though, certainly takes away from my nagging him.

Rolling my eyes, I turn back to watch the ring and I'm surprised to see that Hiccup is the only one facing the Zippleback now. What's more, the little guy isn't even fighting it. He's backing the thing off to it's cage like nothing and before long he has it back in there. Everyone, myself included, is dumbfounded by what we just saw. In my case, I'm a bit more amazed than baffled.

"...how?" I breath, interested, and watch as Hiccup leaves afterwards to god knew where.

"The kid's got some gift or something. Or maybe just lucky."

"Nah," I say with a knowing nod, "No one's that lucky."

And as the following days come and go, I'm starting to think that I wasn't wrong to think that. Out of the blue, Hiccup takes to a very suspicious routine. He manages to somehow beat the training their given without a problem, never hurting the dragons, and once it's over, he sprints off while making some excuse only to disappear until nightfall.

After five days of this, my curiosity has me dying. That afternoon, I drag Akio with me as we scurry our way behind Hiccup. Akio keeps nagging me all the way there and the noise he makes really dampens the effect of the masks that I'm using to hide us.

"This is a horrible idea."

"You're just jealous you didn't think of it sooner."

"Let me rephrase that." Clearing his throat, he tries pulling his wrist away from my tight hold for the umpteenth time. "This is a stupid idea."

"Now see, you're just being a sore loser." Before he retorts, I shush him as we start getting closer to Hiccup as he traverses through a couple of open crevices and climbs down an alcove. It isn't until we're hiding in it after he's left that I realize where we are. "Isn't this the valley where the dragon and Spirit where?"

"It is." Akio scrutinizes his surroundings but quickly shrinks back to hide, telling me to do the same, as his eyes train forward and to the left. "Over there."

Craning my neck over the boulder we're hiding behind, my eyes find what he pointed out. It's the Night Fury...and Hiccup. And they're not killing each other off.

 _What the hell?_

When I look at Akio, I'm pretty sure his confusion and surprise mimic my own. There was no way this could be happening. It went against everything that Gobber taught them. But the more I watch them interact the clearer something becomes.

These two aren't enemies.

 _They're friends._

"Ayano!" Akio's exclaim takes me by surprise but it calls my attention to the blurs of black that appear at the corner of my vision. The bastards are quick and before long the Nightmares have Hiccup and the Night Fury backing away, the dragon coming forward to protect him.

This time, I don't wait for him to say anything. With Ares at the ready, I jump off the ledge and run up to the horde of Nightmares that appeared. The back end of Ares taps against the ground and the war hammer appears near my end which I quickly enlarge to swat away a couple against the wall and create an opening.

"Aya?!" Hiccup exclaims as I take a stand beside the dragon to keep the Nightmares away from both of them. "W-What are you—"

"There's really no time for questions right now, Hiccup," I remind him as Tetsu Blazes charge up their attacks.

The dragon is quick to counter it, hitting one of them with plasma blasts right into its snout. The one blows up like a balloon with smoke coming out of it before it pops out of existence. The others I take care of by swiping away their attacks with the mallet and bringing it down hard on them. At the corner of my eyes, Akio's fighting one handedly and barely keeping some Yoggy Rams at bay. And by the look of how clumsy his punches are, the arm he has left isn't his dominant one. Tapping Ares again, I shoot Fire Magic at the Yoggy Rams which, even when they aren't really hurt from being attacked with their own type of magic, is enough to push them off of Akio and open a clear path for him to join us on our side. Once we're regrouped though, a quick count of the enemy tells me that we're mightily outnumbered. Hiccup is out of the picture since I've seen him incapable of utilizing an actual weapon. Even with us three to fight, only the dragon and I can fight at full capacity. And these chances aren't look up to me.

" _You cannot fight this with only the two of you, Master. The odds are against you."_

Rinto's words only make up my mind further. "We need to run."

"W-We can't!" Hiccup cries out, coming closer to lay a hand on the dragon's back. "The mechanisms broke on our last try a while ago. Toothless can't fly away without it."

"She's right for once." Not in the mood for his shit, I try my best not to hit Akio with the blunt end of my staff. "We can't fight this."

"I'm not leaving him here to these-these—whatever these things are!"

And there's no way I'm leaving without either of them. So despite how stupid I know this is, I take a stance with Ares at the ready. "Then we fight." Akio tries to argue with me but he doesn't get the chance to when the Nightmares start attacking again. The Night Fury—Toothless—and I fight them off for a good minute with Akio staying back as the last resort if one slips past us to Hiccup. But like Rin said before, they're way too many just for Toothless and I. It's hard to try and keep up. I'm quick to realize that I can't. It becomes clearer to me when this look comes over the dragon just as, while being quite a few feet away from me, he snarls at me.

 _Not me. Behind me._

Eyes widen as I spin on my heels but by then the Nightmare is already mere feet from me. Even though it might be useless, I bring Ares up intent on protecting myself as well as I can from the attack.

One that never comes. Instead of the bright fire of the Yoggy Ram that charges at me, a bright flash of gold crosses in front of me. It's the golden Spirit and it quickly nabs at the Nightmare before gobbling it up. Before it even gulps, though, it struts towards Toothless and I, mimicking the Night Fury as the two flank either side of me.

 _This could work._

Three can win this. Confidence surging through me, I have Ares at the ready as more Nightmares rush us. Toothless helps protect Hiccup and Akio well enough while the golden Spirit and I deal with the rest to lighten his load. It's funny and more than a little strange but this Spirit and I are working much too well together. It let's me attack first and before I know it, it's at my back, guarding my blind spots where I'm unable to react fast enough to attacks. And likewise, as it finishes eating those its captures, I watch it's back and keep the Nightmares at bay, popping one or two out of existence while doing so. The process is gradual but once it's set, it's like we're a well-oiled machine. It's baffling but very much welcomed. Within a few minutes, the horde that appeared out of the blue is gone when I pop the last Tetsu Blaze out and it disappears into a dark portal.

Wiping the sweat off my brow, I turn to find that golden Spirit a few steps away from me. Now that I have it closer, I notice that there's so much detail that I'd missed when I first saw it. The Ryu Dragon that stands before me isn't just gold, it's markings are etched in white that gleams beautifully against the sunlight. And it's features are so delicate, too. It's not just the Spirit insignia, it's got patterns along its wings and side that flow down onto its paws that look like stars or constellations. It's oddly beautiful.

"Toothless!" Hiccup runs up to the Night Fury that hurries to his side, surprisingly letting him brush his hand over the top of his head. Once assured of his well-being, Hiccup lets out a heavy sigh. "Thank the gods…" Wanting some explanation, I clear my throat which catches his attention back to me as Akio returns to my side. He returns my raised eyebrow with a nervous chuckle before stuttering, "I-I can explain."

"Good," I reply. Putting Ares away into its holster, I cross my arms in front of my chest and lean to one side. "Because I'm dying to know what's going on here."

And explain he does. He tells us about how he and Toothless—this Night Fury—met and how he slowly befriended him through the passing days by observing him. He also says that that's how he knew so much about dragons which he used during his training to peacefully tame them down.

"Tame?" Akio asks. "You mean this Night Fury—sorry— Toothless." The quick apology comes when Toothless begins growling at Akio and only quiets when the mistake is fixed. "You've been taming him?"

"More like understanding him." Hiccup goes over to Toothless' side and brushes a hand over the makeshift saddle on his back. "I've been helping him."

"Helping him?"

" _Master, the Night Fury's tail."_

Rinto's prompting makes me give a sidelong glance behind Hiccup and Toothless to said tail and it's then that I notice the difference. It's missing part of it and it's been replaced with some sort of prosthetic. But I can't imagine how such fearsome creature got it's tail damaged, at least not until I recall the night of the fires when we first came to Berk. Hiccup had gone missing and came back claiming he'd shot down a Night Fury.

All at once, things make sense and I'm not shy about voicing them. "It's tail got ripped off when you shot it down."

A grimace comes onto Hiccup as he shrugs and anxiously hobbles in place. "Yeah, well, you see—" But he has no excuses and that becomes pretty obvious when he just takes a deep breath to let everything out. "Yeah, you're right." Toothless, however, doesn't seem deterred from hearing that and simply nudges Hiccup's arm. "But I'm trying to fix my mistake. I want to help him, and I want to get to know him better."

"That's a ludicrously—"

"Brilliant idea!" I chime in. It's no consequence to me that Akio sends me this nasty glare when I interrupt him. Dismissing him with a wave of my hand, I start to approach Hiccup but Toothless quickly gets in the way with a low growl. "It's okay," I say, raising my hands to show my intentions. Hiccup's hand on the dragon and how the animal reacts to it by relaxing its squared shoulders tells me that I wasn't wrong to think that either. When he finally allows me some latitude, I stand before the two and try to give my attention to both as I speak. "You don't want your people to know, I'm guessing."

"That'd be ideal," he sarcastically replies.

A chuckle comes out of me before I nod. "Then I promise you they won't find out from me."

A bright smile as well as renewed optimism flashes across his face. It's Akio, however, that interrupts me this time, coming over to grab me by the arm and forcefully pull me away. The contact is brief, though, as he quickly retrieves his hand. But in that short span, I note the odd tingling on my skin where he touched and Toothless' reaction as he snarls deep in his throat.

"Are you crazy? Keeping this from them when it'd get us in trouble with the natives is more than suicidal!" he hisses, trying his best yet failing to keep our conversation to ourselves.

Because there's not much privacy as it is, I don't bother to lower my voice and instead just grin at him which seems to annoy him further. That, in itself, makes my day. "Maybe. But you can't deny that this is something special." My hand motions over to all of Hiccup and Toothless as a whole. "A world were vikings and dragons have been fighting for centuries and he's the first one to not only befriend one but ride one; that is astounding. A miracle even. And goodness knows we've got a shortage of that. And I can bet my bottom dollar that _this_ is what's attracting so many Nightmares. This—them."

"Um, we are what now?" Hiccup asks nervously.

"The monsters from a minute ago," I explain as I turn away from Akio to him. "They're very odd creatures that go after people's dreams. And I'm thinking that it's you and Toothless they're after." As I explain this, my attention goes back to Akio as he takes in my words as well. "It makes sense, doesn't it? You can't tell me it doesn't."

By the way he's seriously mulling over this, I'm sure it does. There's no stopping me now, though, as I put the final nail on the proverbial coffin for him. "It has to be. Otherwise why would this fellow stay for so long near them specifically?" As I say this, I back track towards the Spirit that surprisingly stayed in the vicinity, although quite the distance away. Moving slowly and with patience, I stretch out my hand as I saw Hiccup doing before towards the creature.

"And I don't think this fellow, here, would have bothered to protect them if their dreams weren't important, either."

But the Spirit isn't as welcoming towards me. It looks at me rather intensely a second before it snarls and flies off, picking the dirt around us as it perches itself over the valley. A nervous chuckle comes out of me from the sudden reaction.

 _Seems like the fellow isn't as friendly as Toothless._

Confused and startled at first, Akio shakes his head and averts his gaze as if thinking of what to do. Sadly, I don't give him the chance to do much of that.

"Akio, I know it's not prudent—it's could be considered stupid, even—but Hiccup and Toothless are in danger and whatever this is that they're doing and figuring out, they should have the liberty to do so. And even if you don't agree, I'm still going to protect them. Those Nightmares will come again and until I figure out how to get rid of them, I won't leave them unprotected."

Hiccup mouths a small 'thank you' which I only reply with a nod. Akio groans as he fixes his shoulder back onto his sling, giving me a peeved glare over his shoulder. "Doesn't matter what I think, really. Not when, well, this." With him simply lifting his hand to show the golden bracelet tells me his reason for staying. But the reason doesn't matter to me a whole lot right now. What does matter is that he's agreeing to help. "I'll stay. But if we're going to do this, we're going to have to do it safely and right."

"Couldn't agree more," Hiccup adds as he and Toothless step forward to us.

A smile comes unto me as Hiccup starts telling us his routine of coming there after dragon training to be with Toothless and also of all the things he's been discovering about dragons themselves. Said Night Fury stays close to Hiccup, surely feeling much safer there than anywhere near us. The Spirit, keeps its distance, patrolling for any more enemies. As I watch it from afar, it surprises me that it didn't attack me as it did Akio that first time. That in itself told me that the Spirit wasn't actually hostile like we first thought it to be. Hurting Akio must have been a mistake. Those things we saw flying over us, what Stoick and the others had been hunting, must have been Ryu Dragon Nightmares. But the thought runs out of my head as Hiccup's explanation starts wrapping up. He's told us most of it by the time he suggests to continue at a later time, saying that it'd be best for him to continue his practice with Toothless before night came.

Getting a nod from Akio, we come to the agreement that details can wait for later. We'd be guarding him everyday from now on anyway so there was really no hurry. At least not for me. As Hiccup and Toothless go into what appears to be their normal routine, Akio and I sit back to watch with the Spirit still standing watch, perched over the valley like a good sentinel.

While watching the two friends, a thought comes to me. Their friendship is so genuine, so sincere. It's hard at the edges still but it's apparent how close they are to each other. And it baffles me to no end why he hasn't said a word about this to anybody. I mean, sure, they're vikings who've hunted dragons for hundreds of years but things can change.

 _Can't they?_

"It's not that simple." Understanding Akio's answer after I voice that question to him is what's not simple to me. And when I say that, he averts his gaze from me and to the two friends as they practice controlling Toothless' prosthetic tail. "Years of history are ingrained in these people. When you learn something for so long a certain way, finding a different way to do things is difficult enough as it is. To ask a village as traditional as Berk to change the perspectives of a lifetime in the span of a moment is too much. It won't be easy if that's what he intends to do."

Not easy. That sounds like the understatement of the century.

" _Nothing is ever easy, though."_

And that reminder makes me grin, my hopes renewed instead of plummeting them. "It might not be easy, but it's not impossible either. It's just going to be hard as hell."

And for once, Akio actually agrees without arguing.

* * *

A few days come and go as we settle into this new routine. I can't help but realize that we've spent half a month in this world itself as they do. Despite knowing that, though, I'm relieved a bit when Rinto reminds me that time passes differently among worlds. Days here in Berk are much too akin to hours or mere minutes in other worlds like Traverse Town or Wasteland.

I'm thankful too for that, I suppose, since this time, things are moving at a much steadier pace. Hiccup and Toothless are getting along just fine it seems. Akio and I, on the other hand, are still at odds with each other. Mostly him, apparently. He's still not very happy about what I chose to do, protecting this duo of dorks that is. But I stick to my guns whenever he tries to persuade me otherwise which turns out to be everyday that we come to the valley.

He's stubborn but I've come to terms with that and found how to deal with it for the time being. What I have yet to figure out is how to get the attention of the sentinel that watches over us. That little rascal of a Spirit has remained with us for the past three days. It keeps its distance, always at the top of the valley, and makes rounds every other hour. He's so intent on it that he rarely comes down to eat when we're having a snack.

Today, though, he appears a tad bit more interested when Hiccup starts preparing the food and takes out some ingredients from his satchel. It climbs down from its perch and creeps closer to us cautiously. Toothless gnarls at it and we all watch curious as the Spirit growls back, shaking its head.

"Is that normal?" I ask the dragon expert sitting next to me.

Hiccup shrugs, appearing as astounded about it as we are. "I don't know. I've never seen him interact with other dragons."

"That thing's not a dragon, though." Akio's reply confuses Hiccup but I quickly assure him that it's because it's a special kind of dragon. One that could very well be considered 'not a dragon.' He doesn't believe that lame excuse. Even _I_ don't believe the words that I say but it's better than nothing. Especially when explaining what the Spirit is would be much more tedious than explaining Nightmares to him ever was.

We all quiet down when Toothless suddenly shakes its head and starts sniffing Hiccup's satchel before going to his body. He starts to argue, asking what the matter was with him, but Toothless quickly finishes his search and pulls out something from Hiccup's vest before trotting over to the Spirit.

"Hey!"

"What's that?" I ask and watch closely as Toothless drops what looks to be bread right in front of the Spirit and the Ryu Dragon sniffs at it.

"It's Jule Kaga." His explanation comes swiftly, certainly from my confusion at the odd term. "It's made on occasions because the ingredients are hard to come by during winter. Mostly the sugar cane."

"It's sweet bread," Akio points out but I quickly shush both of them while my eyes are trained on the two reptiles before us.

After having sniffed it more than enough, the Spirit gobbles it up and actually chews it before gulping it down. It licks its lips, satisfied, before growling at Toothless who responds in kind.

 _It...liked it._

"Hiccup, do you have more Jude Ragu?"

"Jule Kaga."

"That."

"Ah…" He quickly runs his hands over his vest, inside and out, before picking out another piece and passing it over when I reach my hand out for him. "What are you going to do with it?"

"Follow your example." The two boys' brows furrow but I leave them to their puzzlement as I slowly go to Toothless' side. The Night Fury appears to be a little more accustomed to me as it only gives me one glance before turning to the Spirit. Kneeling next to him, I pluck a piece off of the sweet bread and show it to the Spirit. "You like it?"

It brings its head back, wary of my actions, but I put it at ease by tossing the piece closer to it. Smelling it a couple of times, the Spirit gulps it down like before, finding no need for chewing such small piece. Taking another piece, I scooch closer to it and toss it again. This time it doesn't hesitate and eats it right away, its tail springing up and swaying back and forth slowly.

With it more at relaxed, I repeat this a couple more times. On my last piece of bread, I'm but inches away and instead of throwing the piece, I lay my hand open to it with the piece settled on my palm. It stays put for a moment, looking back and forth between me and the bread, before coming closer and taking the piece right from my hand. I don't move a muscle until it finishes; it's only then that I turn my palm out so that it faces him and close my eyes.

For a moment, I fear it's gone but that goes away fast enough when I feel the scaly forehead of the Spirit against my hand. A smile comes to me but just as I'm about to open my eyes to look at it, a strange feeling that I can't begin to describe rushes through like the oceans, and it hits me hard. With my eyes closed, I hear something echo in my head. A voice.

It isn't Rinto. It isn't the other Ayano either. This voice sounds empty yet kind at the same time. And it says a name with such love and adoration that I feel like it's talking to a dear friend, and the feeling I get that squeezes my heart tightly tells me the same thing.

" _Aurelius."_

It's only after a few careful strokes against its head that it finally leans in further into my hand and lets me pet him fully.

"So your name's Aurelius, huh?" It purrs suddenly and though it surprises me, it also gets me to laugh. Reaching up with my other hand, I stroke the underside of his chin and it comes even closer until it can sit down before me. "That's a really pretty name. Mind if I call you Aury?"

It doesn't reply. It just purrs on.

Hiccup chuckles as Toothless returns to his side, tongue out and watching us from his place. "Nice going. Food certainly helps open them up." He reaches a hand up to scratch Toothless behind his ear, "Doesn't it, bud?"

"Can that thing even be tamed?" Akio asks.

"I don't know," I reply, turning back to him and neglecting Aury a bit. When he notices I stop, he instantly starts pushing his head against my arm and hand until I start stroking him again. It gets another chuckle out of me and I mindlessly start to scratch him like Hiccup does Toothless before answering Akio. "But I don't think taming is the right word for it. Hiccup isn't taming Toothless. It's more like a friendship, right?" Hiccup's simple answer is a nod as he passes said dragon another fish to eat up. "Aury isn't harmful. He just wants to protect. And I think it was just wary of us because—"

The sentence is caught in my throat and my hand stops scratching Aury when that thought comes to me.

Spirits protect dreamers from Nightmares. And Nightmares are just an extension of the darkness.

 _It was wary of us because of me._

" _Your powers don't come from the darkness, Master,"_ Rinto quickly assures me.

 _No, but they have that same semblance._ It's why I could deceive Heartless a few years ago. It's how I managed to so heartlessly use them and traverse the Organization as Noxaya. And it's how I keep myself isolated to keep others safe from me. It masks the light and harbors me in the dark. It masquerades well. Too well. And it even mixes my essence with it. Surely that negativity is what scared Aury and made him wary of us.

"Sorry we scared you," I whisper to him as I run my hand along his head. "But I promise you that all we want to do is help Hiccup and Toothless too. We don't want those things to get them. We won't let them."

The fact that he nods slowly almost makes me think that it understands me. But it quickly goes away as he pulls back only to walk over to my side and lay down before the fire we made.

"Well, it's here now," Akio says, obviously not enthused about Aury coming to us. "Better teach it how to stay or else we'll be the ones catching the villagers' attention."

"Yeah, I know." Aury purrs deep in his throat as I pet him and the sound is calming to me. It's a bit less jarring than Toothless, more melodic almost. And it helps me relax for the first time in a while as the day goes on into the evening.

* * *

Training is getting harder and harder for the vikings as their numbers dwindle. Gobber told us that soon Gothi, the curator of the village, would be picking one of the kids for the dragon killing ceremony, an honor given only to the top student.

That worries me greatly. Akio, despite being impartial about this particular situation, understands what I mean and how that could be of concern and he gives me his opinion as we watch Hiccup and Toothless take off on their daily flight session.

"You mean because of Hiccup?"

A nod is my answer to that. "He's gotten good at dealing with dragons. Nonviolently but he's dealing with them. If this keeps up and he and Astrid are the only ones tried in the end, I'm almost positive that the old hag will choose Hiccup."

"Even if that comes to be as you think, which I agree will be, what does it matter to us?"

"Are you that heartless?" I asks, incredulous. "They're going to ask him to kill a dragon, a species his friend belongs to."

"I see your point." But even as he says that, he shakes his head again and shrugs his shoulders. "What happens to the residents of this world shouldn't prioritize what we're here for."

That he keeps giving that excuse to me only annoys me and finally has me asking what I've had in my mind for a while now. "And what exactly is your goal, Akio?"

Despite what I hoped for, there's no hesitation in him at my sudden question. All he gives me is the same aloof gaze he's always given me. It's devoid of anything that helps me usually read others and that always bothers me. I can tell a liar from an honest person, but he teeters between the two and it really peeves me that I can't tell which one he is at any given time. Akio doesn't seem to give it any mind, though, and simply looks at me with those bright mercurial eyes.

The staring continues until his eyes widen out of the blue before he's pushed aside, yelping out clearly annoyed. That only gets me to cackle as Aury shoves Akio aside and nips at his shirt. Akio finally raises his voice, mad and peeved at the Ryu Dragon, and shouts at me to get it away. I let it be for a few seconds longer and only call Aury back to me when Akio complains again.

"Let 'im go, Aury. He's a grumpy thing, this one." Aury shakes and lets go of Akio, jumping over him to reach me. The Spirit circles me and lays down around me. The warmth that comes from him is welcomed since the winter breeze of Berk has gotten to me with how I'm dressed and I thank Aury with a scratch to the back of his ears. Akio grumbles under his breath as he sits back up and glares down at Aury.

"I despise that thing."

"He's just a big, playful kitten. Aren't you?" I coo the last part at Aury's face as he lets out his tongue. Grabbing his head between my hands, I mumble gibberish at him. "Aren't you, Aury?"

"How do you know it's name?"

"I didn't," I correct him but don't take my eyes away from the Spirit. Instead, I focus on stroking his back which he seems to like. "It just popped in my head."

"Just like that?"

"Just like that. By the way, you still haven't answered my question." This time I turn to look at him while still petting Aurelius. "What is your goal?"

Akio heaves a sigh before raising his wrist where his golden bracelet hangs. "To get these off, firstly."

"No, I meant prior to this inconvenience. What were you doing at Traverse Town in the first place?"

"That's none of your business."

The standoffish answer doesn't surprise me. I expected it, actually. But this just reminds me that as much as I would like to understand him and get to know what happened to that boy I keep seeing in these new memories, I can't forget that that boy and the one I'm with now are different people. The Akio now is jaded and mysterious. He and his goals are an enigma to me and I can't let myself forget that.

" _Will you still attempt to figure out the truth of him then?"_

I mull over Rinto's question. A part of me wants to, the other tells me not to bother and do as he does and not care. And to be frank, the old me would have done exactly that. Then again, that was before I met Sora, Riku, and the others. Now, after all I've been through, I know that I can be better.

 _I'll be careful, Rin. But yes, I will try._

But it may take some time.

* * *

It's three weeks after we arrived at Berk that Stoick and the rest of the vikings that left return from their search of the dragon's nest. And they do so with less ships that they left with and empty handed to boot. None of them where in the happiest of moods. But when Stoick heard about Hiccup's prowess during his training his demeanor changed. From where I saw it from, however, it wasn't in the best way.

And things only got worse when Gothi finally made her choice between Astrid and Hiccup. Like I thought, she picked Hiccup. He would get the chance to kill the Monstrous Nightmare on the morrow.

And like expected, the little dragon trainer didn't take the news too well. In fact, he left earlier than he usually did packed with essentials when Akio and I found him halfway to the valley. And he only said what was in his mind when we got inside.

"We're leaving. Let's pack up. Looks, like you and me are taking a little vacation...forever."

"You're leaving?" Akio repeats. "To where?"

"Far, far from here," he answers as he kneels down to look over the supplies he'd brought with him.

Just when I'm about to question him further, the movement of a shadow overhead takes me by surprise and when I look up, I can't help but grimace. "Um...Hiccup?"

"Don't bother. Nothing you say or do will stop me."

"It's not what I'll do that should worry you. It's what _she'll_ do."

Both boys turn to look at me perplexed but all I have to do is point towards the boulder overhead for them to notice Astrid sharpening her axe. Hiccup, obviously startled from seeing her there, jumps back which makes me step aside from their path as Astrid corners him back.

" _She must be enraged about the training's outcome."_

"...no kidding."

"Did you say something?" Akio's whispered question is answered with a gentle shake of my head and I focus on Astrid and Hiccup's conversation. More like Astrid's, really, since she's really laying it on thick on Hiccup despite his desperate attempt to drag her away from there. Nothing I do or say will get her away from here so there's no point in me even trying that. Everything halts, though, when a familiar small roar from Toothless rings over the air. Astrid is quick on her feet and puts Hiccup down for cover but at doing that calls on Toothless' attention.

Feeling in my gut what's about to happen, I sprint forward just as Hiccup does and we both manage to push Astrid away before she injured Toothless, with me tackling her down and Hiccup taking the axe. Astrid tries punching me off of her but I avoid each one until Hiccup is sure to have Toothless calmed down.

"It's okay, she's a friend." He turns to me and nods which prompts me to roll away from Astrid before she really laid a heavy blow on me. But she quickly leaves me be and the reason for that is obvious. She's got an absurdly mad Night Fury because she threatened his friend. And even with Hiccup trying to keep him at bay, I can clearly see that Toothless doesn't care.

Oh but things just keep getting worse. Hearing the distress from Toothless, Aury is fast on his feet and reaches us from goodness knows where to take the Night Fury's side against Astrid. Now it's my turn to panic as I'm the one trying to keep the Spirit away from her. But even as I hold him back, my feet are still lugged around by our huge weight difference.

When I'm sure that I can't keep him at bay by myself, I shout at Akio for help. He's audacious enough to raise a smug eyebrow at me but when I scream at him to move his ass to help me, he sighs defeated and rushes over to push Aury back. The Spirit snarls at both of us but I try my best to calm him down and give Hiccup time to introduce Toothless to Astrid in his attempt to smooth the situation over.

Akio huffs as he grabs onto one of Aury's wings to try and push him away. "You-big-fat-dumb-lizard!" His feet drag as Aury pushes forward, taking us both a few inches with him.

"Insulting him won't help!" I groan through gritted teeth, very much miffed by his way of handling this.

"Well he is—" But just as we push again, Aury steps back and let's us both fall forward against the ground. I'm spitting out dirt when I hear Hiccup complaining to Toothless.

"Bud—letting her leave isn't an option! She's going to tell everybody! And they'll—Toothless!"

"She's gone out of sight already," Akio points out to me as he watches the valley's edge. My eyes scan that general direction and see a speck of blonde just off of the horizon.

 _That's not good._

Running up to Hiccup, I tell him this and that just freaks him out more. But he suddenly calms down when an idea seems to pop into his head. Without a word, he runs up to mount Toothless and asks him to help him on this. Reluctantly, the Night Fury agrees and runs for a head start.

Before they take off, though, I shout out, "What are you going to do?"

"Show her what I've come to learn!" With that said, the two take off in a flurry of wind that makes me cover my face as the dirt picks up behind them.

"Show her?" Akio repeats.

"I think…" I give myself some room to think since my thoughts are all but scattered from what just happened. "I think he's going to take her somewhere. Maybe to ride on Tooth—" I don't get to finish that sentence. A scream and a speck of black shooting up towards the orangey-blue sky as dusk begins to come over Berk tells me I was right to assume that.

Akio covers his eyes to see them as they disappear before whistling. "That's impressive."

"What is?"

He scoffs and turns to walk away as he answers me. "That she hasn't fallen off yet."

Shaking my head at his morbid sense of humor, I do as he did and watch the black dot that is Toothless as it disappears into the clouds in the sky. Despite how bad things are, I can't help but wonder what it would feel like to fly over the skies, to touch the clouds, and see the world from so high up.

 _It looks like it'd be fun._

"HEY!"

Taken aback by Akio's loud outcry, I'm ready to face whatever got him to react so brusquely but I'm stunned myself when I see Akio trying to not fall from Aury's back as the Spirit jumps around. It's as if he's trying to accomodate Akio on his back like some luggage. Once he does and Aury turns to me with a giddy sort of expression, dread washes over me an instant before he rushes at me. No matter what I do or say, he's there in a second and runs behind me, ducking his head down and between my legs to get me onto his back. The harsh handling gets me to push Akio further onto Aury's back as I hold onto its head and with a few jumps has us seated on his back. The instant I feel him charging back, the dread comes back to me tenfold as what he's about to do hits me.

"Hold on!" I cry out to Akio just before Aury shoots out into the sky. My eyes close shut before I even know it and my arms wrap tightly around his neck as I scream bloody murder at feeling the air rush past my body. Akio isn't any different but I can't be sure as I'm focusing more on not dying from the deadly fear that grapples my very soul.

 _High. High. So high!_

"Au-Aury! Aurelius, take us back down, please!" I beg him, wanting him to stop and bring us back down. But the Spirit doesn't stop. It just keeps flying higher and higher.

Just as I'm about to pass out from all this, though, the wind that whips so violently against me stops and in its place is a gentle breeze. But since I can't feel any ground beneath me, I'm terrified at even the idea of opening my eyes.

"Ayano?"

Not even Akio's voice or him shaking my shoulder get me to move as I lean myself against Aury's back. He's my lifeline right now. If I let go of him with how high up we are— _I don't even want to think of it._

" _It's okay, Master."_ Rinto's assurance does little to calm me. It isn't until Aury purrs and reaches back with his head to nudge at me that I feel the least bit of need to open my eyes. It takes me awhile but when I finally do open them, I'm left in awe at the beautiful skies that stretch out around us.

I don't look down. It'd be crazy to ruin such dazzling view by augmenting my fears. So instead, I grip tightly onto Aurelius as he takes us through skies that glitter like thousands of tiny gems being illuminated by the setting sun.

"...it's gorgeous…" I let under my breath as Aury flies untethered.

A brush of his hand against my leg as he grabs onto the base of Aury's wings reminds me of Akio sitting behind me. Braving the pit of fear in my stomach, I glance over my shoulder to Akio as he looks at the same scenery that awed me as well. As the sky darkened around us and the stars brightened the night sky, those same lights made his mercurial eyes sparkle in wonder and made them appear childlike.

In a way, it's like I was seeing the little boy from those memories in Akio. The two of them were seamless in that one instant.

He doesn't notice my staring before something else catches his attention. "There they are." Akio points out towards the skies ahead of us. Turning to where he gestures, I barely see Toothless in the night sky. It's much easier to see Hiccup and Astrid as they ride together. They're not far away but before we can even reach them, Toothless takes a sharp dive and disappears into the fog ahead.

"They're gone."

"We can't follow them through the fog," Akio says, wary as I am about what just happened and what could possibly lay ahead.

I'm about to agree when Aury shakes his head and speeds up, taking that same sharp dive to follow after Toothless. "A-Aury, we can't!" But he refuses to listen and instead follows as close to the Night Fury as he can.

"This lizard is going to get us lost." Akio lowers himself closer to me as if trying to make me listen above the noise of the wind whipping past us with how fast Aurelius is flying. "Do something!"

"I can't!" I shout back, more concerned with trying to make out what's past the fog. "He's not listening to me. He's following Toothless on his own!"

"Damn Spirit―"

I don't have to ask what cut his words short. The sight as the fog clears around us is more than enough of an explanation. At seeing the horde of dragons that start appearing from beyond the fog, instinctively, I press my body against Aury and hiss at Akio to do the same. He listens and we both look around at the large beasts that fly along our general direction, some of which Aury dodges to avoid us getting hit.

"What's that in their talons?" I ask in a quiet whisper, my sight trained on a Monstrous Nightmare and it's claws.

"It looks like...animals." Akio inhales sharply and leans over as if to verify what he thought he saw. "It's their kill. Animals from all over the place. Where are they taking it?"

We get our answer soon enough. Aurelius turns out to be a deft flyer and is capable of keeping up with Toothless. He follows down and into the boals of a mountain where the inside is burning red.

 _Lava residue?_

" _The temperature readings appear similar to a dormant volcano, Master. They're also quite different, though."_

"Different how?" I don't care if Akio hears me. Figuring out if we're in a death trap is much higher in my priority list than avoiding being thought as crazy.

" _The temperatures may be due to the lava still in the depths. Or it could be because of the dragons situated here."_

I'd vote for the latter from the sight I get after Aury follows Toothless into a small crevice to hide. Turning to Hiccup, I tell him my suspicions but he shakes his head in disagreement.

"Their presence here would've waken it. Something else is keeping the fires high in this place. Look!"

All our attention goes to the hollow bottom where Rinto and I both suspected the lava from originating. But as I see the dragons dropping their hunt there, something tells me we might've both been wrong.

"Well," Hiccup says, defeatingly. "It's satisfying to know that all our food is being dumped down a hole."

"They're not eating any of it," Akio mutters quietly in response.

The observation isn't lost to me either. But it gets worse when a passing Grunkle leaves its meager kill and lounges far too long above the hole. From the pits of that hell, something emerges—a giant dragon that certainly ate everything thrown down that hole. It even takes the poor Grunkle as well.

"What is that?" Astrid's question is something I can't help ask myself. That things just ate one of its own, and his appearance made all the other dragons hide inside the crevices of the mountain.

"They're scared of it."

But as the giant dragon lingers in view, something else catches my eye. It's a small creature. It's far too small to be dragon—it doesn't even have wings—but it's perfectly perched at the head of the massive dragon without a trouble in the world. It's bright blue tail sways about and that, along with its bright luminescent head, are stark contrasts against the red that swallows the bottom of the mountain. Its paws are touching the dragon's head, and a coat of something akin to black ice seems to have spread across it, reaching down to at least one eye. Unlike the other which looks dark orange with a black pupil, the eye that the ice touches is a neon blue, just like the fog coming out of the tiny creature.

It all becomes suddenly more unnerving when that same eye turns to look at us.

"Alright bud, we gotta get out of here."

"I'm with Hiccup, Aury." The Spirit lurches back and takes off just as Toothless does when Hiccup urges him forward. As we fly out of the nest, my attention lingers behind us where the dragon attacked and where I can see the creature staring at us from afar with soulless, beady black eyes. It raises its hand to point at us a second before the dragon turns and lunges in an attempt to get to us. The dragons dispersing above us make it hard for us to leave but I urge Aury to push through. In the end, we break through, leaving that massive beast, the nest, and that tiny creature behind.

But he's not the only thing we have to worry about. Just as we break through to the sky, a small horde of Ryu Dragons chases out after us.

"It's those monsters that attack the village!" Astrid shouts out, holding tighter to Hiccup.

"We need to lose them."

Even though I wholeheartedly agree with Hiccup's suggestion, these things are not easy to lose. They're vehemently after us and by the looks of it, fly just as fast as Aury and Toothless. It's not until Aurelius jerks in mid air that I turn to see one of them caught his tail and the extra weight was bringing us down fast.

Taking out Ares to fend them off isn't much help. I can't both hold on and smack them with the hammer. The only magic I know is fire and that doesn't make a dent on them either. And getting a clearer view of them tells me just what's making them so persistent. That red tint in their eyes.

 _They're infected._

Those thoughts are pushed back when Akio shoves Ares aside to kneeling to face the Nightmares. That precarious position of his worries me to no end. "What are you doing!?"

"Dealing with them!" he yells back as he hauls back his arm, the same arm that just healed completely a few days ago. As he charges it up, the same energy I've gotten used to seeing gathers at his fist and the black tendrils crackle to life an instant before he lets it loose. His fist hits nothing but air but the subsequent shockwave captures the Nightmare gnawing at Aury's tell as well as the others that had been following us, effectively stunning them. The attack isn't one-sided, though. Aury is thrown off balance by whatever kind of attack that was and nose dives out of the blue which throws both of us off of him.

A scream is ripped from my lungs as my fear comes back with a vengeance and I thrash around, trying to find any kind of solid surface to hold onto.

"Aya!" The sound of my name brings me slightly back but the fear, crippling as I feel it to be, narrows my vision and I only see an outstretched hand reaching towards me. Wanting to preserve myself and find some anchorage, I reach out and clasp my hand against it, the other locking tightly around mine the instant mine connects. Somehow, it hauls me closer to its body in mid air—I can tell by the sudden warmth that comes next to me and by how it suddenly breaks the winds rushing at me—but we're falling all the same. "Aya, call him!"

 _Him?_

"Ayano, call that dumb lizard!"

 _He's not dumb. His name's_ —

" **Aurelius!"**

There's a rush of wind beside us an instant before something breaks our fall. It's not the ground—it's fleshy and squishy—but it gave me enough security to finally focus on my surroundings.

Aury caught us in mid air. Us—my eyes turn to glance at Akio who lays panting beside me, a hand against his arm. He reached out for me. He knocked enough sense into me to call for Aury to save us.

 _What an idiotic, little man._

And yet that same idiotic, little man saved us.

"Thank you," I whisper, completely at a loss for any other words with the shock of having falling for so long still shaking the inside of my head.

"T-That's...three…"

For some reason, his counting of debts I owe him seems funny to me this time around and gets a small chuckle out of me.

"Aya, Akio, you guys alright?"

Following the nasally voice, I find Hiccup and Astrid flying a few feet away on Toothless, their faces etched with worry. Wanting to appease them, I nod as both Akio and I take back our seats on Aury.

Hiccup nods and motions out towards the south. "Let's head back."

* * *

We return to the valley about an hour later and after Astrid and Hiccup talk things over, Astrid seems to arrive at a solid conclusion just as we land.

"It totally makes sense. It's like a giant beehive. They're the workers and that's their queen. It controls them."

"Very much plausible—get me off this thing before I puke." Akio's comment as Aury lands makes me want to complain myself about being sick to my stomach ever since we took off—more so after that last stunt against the Nightmares—but I'm drawn back to the conversation between the two before us.

Astrid wants to tell Stoick about the nest. It's what they've been searching for for many years. But Hiccup doesn't—he can't if he wants to protect his friend. It's his admitting to that fact so confidently that seems to win Astrid over. After asking him, Hiccup says to give him until morning to figure something out.

When she punches his shoulder, I get a laugh out of that, but when she gives him a chaste kiss, I can't help but cover my eyes with my hands only to peek through my fingers while chuckling. Toothless seems to tell Hiccup off about his choice of women after she leaves too, but Hiccup chastises him.

"Cute and all, but I've got to ask," Akio says as he walks up to him and Toothless. "What's this brilliant plan of yours?"

"What part of 'give me till tomorrow' did you not hear?" Hiccup asks annoyed. "Look, I'll figure out something out. For the time being, I think I'll stay."

"Stay here?" I inquire a bit confused.

"You saw that dragon—their so-called queen—even worse, you saw those monsters it controlled. I can't leave Toothless by himself. Not tonight."

"You can't stay, either. If you don't show up to that final exam of yours, they'll come find you. And by extension, they'll find Toothless."

Akio has a point. I don't disagree with Hiccup; Toothless is in danger being alone. But Akio is also right; staying with Toothless could also put him at risk.

At least, Hiccup staying with Toothless would.

" _Master, dont_ — _"_

 _Too late._

"We'll stay with Toothless."

"What?"

"Excuse me?"

Both of their outbursts is something I expected but I only roll my eyes before repeating what I said. "Akio and I will stay with Toothless. That way you can be assured none of those Nightmares will attack him and you won't miss your exam. Besides that, they won't be looking for us like they would for you. It's perfect."

"Except for the fact that I didn't offer myself for it," Akio mentions.

I shrug my shoulders. "Details." Ignoring him, I walk up to Hiccup and lay my hand on his shoulder. "I think you're capable of figuring this out, Hiccup. Go home, think about it, and then rest. We'll make sure nothing happens to Toothless while you're gone."

He gives me a faint smile before nodding. "Thank you."

Urging him to go, he gives Toothless one last goodbye. "I'll figure this out, bud. I promise." Toothless purrs under his touch and looks after him as he leaves back to Berk.

"You're unbelievable."

Akio is positively fuming over what I just did but I don't give it much thought. Instead I watch where Toothless goes to lay down before choosing a place to stay myself. I've been on campouts before, and seeing as the environment here in Berk is a bit more forgiving than that of other worlds, it's not as bad. Picking the spot just behind a large boulder and piled rocks, it's perfect for guarding against the wind and even better for building a fire.

As Akio keeps arguing loudly by himself—something that bothers Aury and Toothless but which I just dismiss—I go gather wood for a fire that I light with Ares. Taking a seat against the boulder to let myself warm up, I notice that it's a perfect spot to oversee them all. Toothless is just off to the left and nearest to the lake while Akio blows off steam off by the right. Aury is the only one that comes near me as he cuddles closer to me after laying down. His head gently rests on my lap which prompts me to pet him as I stare into the fire.

"Thank you for saving us, Aury." The Spirit purrs and buries its head closer to my body. What a odd little Dream Eater.

It's only after a few minutes of enjoying the fire that Akio comes by, his face reddened and glare directed at me.

"I'm not staying."

"Suit yourself," I reply with a shrug of my shoulders. "Go back to Berk. I'll stay with Aurelius and Toothless until tomorrow."

"You really believe that twerp can solve this debacle of his?"

"I do."

"You're an idiot then." His footsteps leave from where we are as I look back at the fire that warms the small place.

"Maybe," I say, the warmth reaching my chest. "But if believing in the impossible makes me an idiot then...I'm the biggest one there is."

 _And it would make all that I'm doing meaningless._

But it's not. I can't lose hope that it's not. Finding hope is what I have to do. Not just for this but also for what I'm doing here. I'll find a way to cure myself and to cure Haruka. I'll find a way to save us. And even if it's as hopeless as Hiccup convincing his people that dragons aren't to be feared, then I'll just keep believing and working harder until I find a way for it to come true.

To my utter surprise, a shadow comes around the fire and it's only after he sits down next to me that I turn to look at Akio. He doesn't spare me a glance. Instead, he does as I did and stares into the fire, his eyes turning a shade paler in the light of the flames.

I don't say anything. He surely must be staying here to preserve his life like he's said so many times before. Nonetheless, that he's staying here does make me a tad bit happier and thankful of his choice despite it being ultimately selfish.

Aury seems to agree. Raising from his place, the Ryu Dragon goes around the fire and steps over Akio to come back to lay his head on my lap and have the rest of his body laying on Akio's.

He groans as he tries to push him off but as big as Aury is, there isn't anything much to make him budge. My chuckle only makes that point clearer to him and he gives up before long.

"I hate your lizard."

"He loves you."

Things are left at that and we spend an hour more in silence, watching the night go by. My mind, however, reels over what we saw at the dragon's nest and finally prompts me to ask.

"Akio?"

"Mm."

"At the dragon's nest, on that large dragon's head, did you see that thing perched atop it?"

"Thing?" He leaves me in silence for a whole minute before he nods, "I think so. Like a small squirrel or something?"

"I guess." My mind focuses on Aury's soft snoring as we talk. "It wasn't a dragon but it didn't appear like any other creature I've seen either. It did have some kind of...resemblance to that other one we saw at Cite de Cloches."

"That thing was a monstrosity. This one was—from what I could see—a much smaller creature."

"And yet it gave the same feeling as that monster. Besides, the ice covering the dragon's head and it's eye looked to be doing something."

"I saw that too." Glancing up at Akio, he seems lost in the fire as he thinks aloud. "Almost like it was controlling it."

"Or trying to at least," I point out. "You think that was what sent those infected Nightmares after us?"

"Infected?" At how confused he sounds, I explain to him what Rinto and I concluded after talking it over. He nods as he listens intently and it appears to actually catch his attention. "It wouldn't surprise me if that were the case. Nightmares can be intensified and made worse. And I agree that those creatures we saw could have to do with it too."

"I thought so." A yawn leaves me and I rub my eyes as they return to the burning embers. "We need to go back and check it out. That place might have another relic."

"The jewelry you're searching for?"

I nod at his question a bit too sleepy to notice what I'm saying. "Those memories...they'll lead me to a cure. For Haru and for me."

My words drift away and my head nods off a second before it lays against something soft and warm. Soon enough I'm not able to keep awake anymore and I drift off to sleep before I know it.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _Christmas gift! That's pretty much all I wanted it to be. I edited this in a tad bit of a haste so pardon any mistakes found here._

 _I'll say thank you to all those who read, favorite, and review. I write this for you!_

 _Anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you stay tuned for the next update! Happy Holidays, and also for those who celebrate it, have a Merry Christmas! And to all a Happy New Year! See you guys in 2018!_


	6. Memoir VI: Blinded Courage

**Memoir VI:**

 _Blinded Courage_

* * *

It isn't the light of the morning that wakes me but a set of teeth latched gently on my leg and and pulling me forward that does. It jerks me awake as I catch a glimpse of Aurelius pulling me back and toppling me off of whatever I fell asleep on to fall back onto the ground. The noise around me intensifies as I rub the back of my head but it's Toothless' warring roar that switches my gears fully.

Beside me Akio is already crouched, pulling his gloves on and assessing the situation before us. My eyes travel alongside his line of vision to what's happening: Toothless and Aury are fighting Nightmares, ones that seem to be after the Night Fury.

My hand reaches to Ares instantly as I silently count the enemies surrounding us. "They're not many."

"We can deal with them," Akio responds tightening his fists before we both charge into the fray. It turns out to be easy like we predicted but in the midst of tearing apart a Ryuu Dragon much smaller than him, Toothless freezes, his eyes dilating to a ridiculous degree. I'm confused for that split second until he begins to out act baffling me further. Caring not about the Nightmares still left, the Night Fury rushes towards the cliff and jumps as high as he can against it, trying to desperately claw his way up.

Akio jumps into the air avoiding the couple of Nightmares that charged at him before letting his weight take him down and stomping on the two with the soles of his shoes that were enveloped in that energy I've seen on his hands before. Pivoting towards our direction, he arches a brow at Toothless and then towards me. "What's the matter?"

"I-I don't know—" I'd never seen him act that way. _Not unless Hiccup's—_ My stomach sinks at the thought. "...Hiccup." Just as the name leaves me, Toothless reaches the edge of the cliff and I hear his claws dig deep against the granite. He propels himself up and is gone before any of us can react.

"What is it, Ayano!" he shouts, punching another Nightmare away before it reached me.

"It's Hiccup, it has to be!"

Akio's expression goes blank for a moment before his eyes narrow. "His dragon slaying test." His head turns up to where Toothless had climbed out of. "It's today."

We both knew what was wrong then. Something must have happened to Hiccup, something bad enough to make Toothless react so rashly. _We have to help them._ My train of thought is quickly derailed as another Ryuu Dragon comes my way and without thinking I stick Ares out for it to eat one end. Before it has time to react, I blast out a burst of fire magic making it explode. My eyes scan the area and notice that even with the many we've already dealt with there's still a handful left.

" _They won't allow you to leave, Master."_

 _Then I'll make them._

"Aurelius!" And my calling is all it takes.

I don't know what comes over me to call to him with such commanding tone but the Spirit listens and finishes tearing another Nightmare before making haste to my side. Once there, Aurelius doesn't waste a second and charges up an attack in his now open mouth before firing it off and taking all of the Nightmares with it. With the coast clear, I turn to Akio behind me who'd been watching wide eyed this whole time. "Get on."

He opens his mouth as if wanting to protest but shakes his head and the bafflement from before goes away with it as for once he follows without asking questions. I take a few seconds to strap Ares back on its holsters before coming to Aury's side as he lowers his wing to let me climb onto him more easily. Crippling fear straps me to the ground for a second as the thought of flying—of being above ground even when riding Aurelius—comes to mind again.

But I shake it out of my head as soon as it comes. I can't let fear hinder me now. Not when those two are in god knew what kind of trouble. They need us. Pushing my fears aside, I climb onto Aury at the same time as Akio jumps on but instead of straddling on correctly, he adjusts himself so that we're back to back.

My brow furrows at this and when he sees this, Akio merely clicks his tongue. "I'll cover our backs while you guide the stupid lizard to Berk, so hurry it up!"

That's all the explanation I need before I grab onto the side of Aury's neck and lean closer to him. "Let's go, Aury. They need us." An instant after pulling back, Aury shoots into the air. I don't scream this time and instead hold onto him for dear life. As soon as we're out of the canopy and the sky is clear, I focus on the road ahead as he rushes towards Berk.

I'm paying so much attention to what's going on in front of me that I fail to see the blast of energy that makes Aury swerve to the right. This time I do let out a yelp as I look over my shoulder to see a group of Nightmares chasing after us. What catches my attention most of all is the tiny blue one that is perched atop one of bigger Ryuu Dragons.

"Akio, the squirrel—"

"I know!" he shouts back over the air that's rushing past us. But even as he charges his attack, the energy on both his hands now, he's reluctant to attack again after missing the first couple of ones. "My hits won't reach them."

It's almost like they're learning. They know what to expect from Akio and I. If they manage to follow us all the way back to Berk, they'll ambush the whole village. We can't let that happen.

 _What can we do?_

" _As things stand now?"_ Rinto says, _"Improvise."_

Sounds like a plan. I give one last glance behind me to the few targets I have as I make out my plan. My stomach turns just thinking about what I'm thinking of doing but I swallow that before yelling at Akio behind me. "Turn around and hold onto Aury real tight!"

He's in the middle of asking me what I'm talking about but I see that he's listening to me all the same. Good. Leaning over to Aury, I let him in on the plan. "Fly over them, Aury, and get ready to catch."

The Spirit doesn't acknowledge me but seeing his wings begin to tuck in little by little tell me he's readying himself to do as I say. I silently pray to live through this and clench my jaw shut just as Aury speeds up a second before sharply turning upward. The movement is sudden but I manage to keep my eyes open as he goes for a half circle above the Nightmares. Just as he reaches the highest peak of his turn, I loosen my legs around him and let go. All my muscles tighten at feeling nothing underneath me but I force myself to move midair as I reach down to Ares and extend it into one of the Nightmares as I fall on top of it. I hop between Ryuu Dragons as fast as I can, jumping to another as soon as the one I'm on begins to disappear. When the blue Nightmare and the Ryuu Dragon are the only ones left, I jump directly to attack it with the warhammer extended. My arm comes back and I swing as hard as I can towards it but before the mallet connects, it's blue tail ignites and swings upward. The motion brings with it a trail of blue mist that solidifies into black ice in an instant effectively blocking my attack.

Shocked by the sudden block that it pulled out of its ass, I'm not able to think about my landing. There are no other Nightmares left but as I'm falling and my dread mounts higher, the sudden stop that I experience both hurts me and fills me with relief as I slam belly down against Aury's back. Hands quickly come to hold me down against Aury as I struggle to not look down and petrify myself further. A weak smile quirks at the edges of my lips as I glance up at Akio.

"Thanks," I mumble.

"You crazy ass bi—" The turn and stop that Aurelius takes so suddenly stops him from finishing that. My eyes come up as I sit upright on Aury and I'm face to face with the blue Nightmare on his ice-covered mount. It stares right at us, blank, beady, and wide-eyed. It floats there and the attack I'm expecting just never comes. Instead, it tilts its head sideways as if listening to something before the Ryuu Dragon it is on pivots and flies away.

Aury lingers in the air as we watch it retreat. Akio is the one that speaks first as he turns sideways to me. "We shouldn't let it get away."

My head shakes in agreement. "But we can't chase after it." Turning to glance over my shoulder, I manage to see Berk over the end of the forest. "Hiccup and Toothless need us more."

Akio glares at me then. "It's only going to continue to wreak havoc the more we wait. We _can't_ let it get away, Ayano."

This time I don't reply. My hand comes over Aury's neck and taps him a couple of times. "Take us to Berk, Aury." He doesn't hesitate; Aurelius turns and shoots out towards the village.

* * *

 _They're gone._

Every last ship, every last viking except for children and the elderly, their all gone. The sight of Berk so empty leaves a sinking feeling in my stomach but I don't let it linger as I tap Aury and guide it towards the training grounds. I don't bother with telling Aury to lay low when there's nobody here to notice us. The moment I see the arena empty except for a handful of kids, my eyes widen and a small smile comes to my lips out of relief.

"What are they doing…?" Akio mumbles under his breath as we come closer and closer to the training grounds.

The small smile instantly turns into a grin the moment I see Hiccup pull open one of the doors and enters it. "Improvising."

Aurelius lands with a loud thud on top of the broken cage that sits over the training grounds and perches there as all their heads shoot upward to stare at us. A small pat to his head makes Aury lower his head so that Akio and I are visible to the group that's waiting on Hiccup to come out of the cage.

"Yo," I call out with a wave of my hand to salute them, "You guys getting a ride too?"

"What in Odin's name is that?" Snotlout points at Aury, a bit taken aback by the sight of him over them.

"Shiny," Ruffnut and Tuffnut mumble together in amazement.

"T-That dragon doesn't appear in any of our books," Fishlegs cries, equally amazed as he is terrified by that prospect. "Golden dragons don't exist."

That gets me to laugh and I pat Aury's head playfully as he grumbles in his throat giddy from it. "Guess Aury's special then. Right, boy?"

"I think you guys should be less preoccupied about this dragon and more about those." Akio gives a slight nod over to the open doors as Hiccup brings out the dragons they had used for training and teaches the kids how to interact with them. As they do that, Aurelius steps back to let them fly out after being mounted.

One by one, they rise in their dragons more comfortably and confidently than ever and hover in the sky to wait for Astrid and Hiccup as they rise on the back of the same dragon. At seeing this, my brow furrows, "Where's Toothless?"

"My dad took him." A forlorn expression came over him as he said this but renewed determination masked it well enough as he looked back at me. "They're headed to the dragon's nest using Toothless to guide them."

"But that beast dragon we saw—it'll kill them," Akio pointed out with a shake of his head.

"We know," Astrid agreed, holding tightly onto her dragon's neck, "which is why we're going too."

There isn't much for me to do except nod as we join them in the air. "Lead the way."

* * *

It's quite amazing how fast they adapted to riding their dragons. Frankly, I'm surprised _I_ got used to riding Aury so quickly. The fear that clung to me, although not entirely gone, isn't as crippling as before. I can mostly let it slide for now knowing that there's more important things to worry about.

The moment we enter the fog, I know that we're nearing the nest more and more and I hurry Aurelius after the others while leaning closer to his head. Akio does the same, lowering himself as close to me as he's okay with, and making the drag less for Aury as we travel side by side the rest of the kids.

"You really think we can defeat that thing?" Akio asks. He's shouting over the wind that rushes over us but even then I barely hear him.

"I think so?"

"That's not assuring at all."

 _I know that but it's all I have._ Even if Hiccup gets Toothless back, that would still only be six dragons against the behemoth that is that dragon we saw in the nest. And that's not mentioning the Nightmares that could appear with that blue squirrel who could apparently control them there as well.

And if Hiccup and the others are going to focus on that dragon then we need to keep the threat of the squirrel away from them. Lifting my head, I find the Nadder he is on and catch his attention with the wave of my hand overhead. "You remember those monsters from before? The ones that attacked you and Toothless?"

"You mean the most horrifying creatures I've ever seen in my life aside from the dragon we're about to face?" He scoffs, not to be condescending but to hide the fear and nervousness that I see in his eyes, "Not at all. But let's say I do, what about them?"

"One of them is controlling that big ole one we saw at the nest. Or at least trying to." It's hard to explain but in reality, there isn't a need for them to understand it so in depth. All I need them to get is what Akio and I will be occupying ourselves with. "All I'm saying is to not worry about it!"

"Oh, thanks!" he snarkily remarks, "reminding me of it controlling the biggest dragon we've ever seen just washes all my anxiety away."

"Don't you sass me!" I shout at him but quiet down when I see we're exiting the fog. As it clears, I notice the island we entered before from afar and from here even see that the dragon in question is already out and trying to kill the vikings that scamper off for their lives. "Just focus on getting Toothless back and about the safety of your people! Akio and I'll deal with the twerp and any of the Nightmares."

"Then you better get ready because I see one up ahead!" he calls out, pointing towards the dragon ahead of us. True to word, there's the squirrel from before perched on the dragon's forehead, its ice traveling down and coming into one of its eyes.

My sight narrows as I pat Aury on the side of the head. "Can you shoot it down?" Aury roared before opening its mouth to let energy build before unleashing a blast of fire magic that hit its target. The blue Nightmare shakes from the direct hit but it's the ice on the dragon that takes my attention. That ice breaks and the dragon's pupils dilate as it snaps out of the squirrel's control. It begins to shake its head violently now that it's free of its control and although the squirrel tries its best, with no footing to stand, it stumbles and falls off the dragon's head.

Far to the side, Hiccup shouts his orders out to the group but we don't hear it. We separate from them the moment we see the cyan Nightmare fall from its perch. Neither Akio nor I are close enough to be able to attack it but Aury is fast enough to build more magic to fire once more. The fireball shoots out and it certainly would've hit had the Nightmare not snapped back into action. Quicker than even I can see, it shoots two simultaneous ice beams from his tail and head. The one that reaches first is the one that he shoots from his foggy head down onto the ground; the instant it touches the floor, it solidifies into that black ice from before giving him standing ground. A fraction of a second later, its tail sweeps out and creates a shield of black ice that blocks Aury's fireball completely.

 _That again._

Not letting our speed waver, I push Aury further through the smoke screen caused by the impact and crash against the thin ice pillar it made. Akio yells at me over the ruckus of it falling but I ignore him and simply focus on helping Aury land properly. He does—somewhat—but struggles a bit to stop his momentum and turn at the sametime which forces him to stop abruptly and jolts us out of our seats. Although we both scramble to our feet, we do so just in time to see the squirrel summon a large horde of Nightmares, half of which are airborne and impeding the dragons from getting near the bigger one. It's then that I catch a glimpse of how it rapidly infects it, the fog from its head and tail spreading faster than anything I've seen and seeping right into the Nightmares making their eyes shine from red to his same cyan blue.

"Did you see that?"

The nod of my head is the only answer he gets just as the Yoggy Rams and Tetsu Blazes begin their rampage. A blaze burst out in a huge blast that take us both by surprise. Luckily, Aurelius jumps into the fray then and shoots a blast of his own to counter it. A huge smokescreen comes out of it giving me a split second to think.

There's a vague count in my head of how many we're dealing with and I ask Rinto to confirm it from what she also saw. _"Not far off, master. They're forty-five with at least three quarters airborne."_

"Akio." Mercurial eyes turn to me wide and attentive, his hands in fists just as ready to strike whatever dared come his way. That, in itself, answers my question before I even ask it. "There's maybe forty-five of them from my count and ten stuck to the ground, squirrel not included. You think you can—"

"Of course I can." His brow furrows indignantly and he pulls his arms back to hold his stance, his fists engulfed in that dark energy I'm familiar with seeing now. "You and your lizard clear off the skies for them."

Trusting that he's capable enough to deal with those few himself, I run towards Aurelius and jump onto his back before leaning in closer to his head. This time I don't need to say anything to him as he immediately takes off avoiding the blazing flames that come after us. My eyes catch a glimpse of the blue Nightmare as we fly by it and it beady stare follows me until I break it and focus forward.

" _Be cautious, master,"_ Rinto reminds me as Aury hovers just a few feet away from the horde that's been attacking Hiccup and the others as they try to distract the grand dragon. " _They're great in numbers. And that's besides the fact that you're not a great fighter in the air."_

"That's alright." A grin comes to me as I extend Ares and bring it out of its holster with the mallet at the ready. Underneath me, I feel Aury rumble deep in his throat and feel the heat from the magic that's building up inside him, ready to fire at a moment's notice. "Aurelius has got me covered."

A simply tap is all he needs to fly off and shoot as he goes. His bursts are powerful enough to pop out of existence any Nightmare it hits. Those he misses or that manage to avoid his magic are the ones I focus on with Ares' mallet. That they're infected makes it a little harder for me to pop them but with every turn Aurelius makes, he keeps shooting and I keep on batting those I missed out on the first roundabout. It's strange how easily we get in sync but it's something that I won't complain about. Just as I'm hitting another one out of the ballpark, Astrid's voice booms over the noise.

"He's up!" And as I turn to see for myself, I catch the glimpse of a black dragon zooming in towards the battle. But as Toothless flies towards the dragon, my eyes catch the sight of a Ryuu Dragon—the last one left in my hit list—heading straight towards Toothless and Hiccup's trajectory.

"No, you don't," I hiss under my breath and give a quick glance over the surroundings. The mountains—they're creating a good shade for me to climb. There's no hesitation in me as I jump off of Aury while using the shadows created by the island to climb upward above the Ryuu Dragon. Even though I'm careful as I climb, the one shaky step turns up the adrenaline running through me and forces me to leap off towards the Nightmare that's right below me now. Changing Ares to the spiked spear, I use the altitude of my fall and gravity's pull to impale the Nightmare downward just in time to let Hiccup and Toothless rush through unimpeded.

But when the Ryuu Dragon disappears and I'm left to free fall while facing down, fear encroaches my mind. It's deafening and it freezes the blood in my veins, but a blur of gold comes through and catches me, the air escaping me when I hit Aury's back.

 _I really need to find a better way to land._

Turning on my back as I chuckle the fear out of my mind, I pat Aury weakly. "Thanks, boy. You're a lifesaver." A grumble spreads from his stomach; I imagine that's his way of chuckling and it makes me scoff.

"Aya!" Hiccup's call makes me look up to catch him as he rushes past us. My eyes follow him as he rounds the grand dragon. Toothless shoots a couple of plasma blasts before they skirt past me again, this time completing his thought when he speaks out. "Get it up in the sky!"

There's millions of questions running through my head but I know I don't have time to ask any of them. Instead I trust him and mount Aury correctly before we go around doing as Hiccup and Toothless are and shooting at the dragon. It's seemingly annoyed by our constant attacks and our dodging his own, growing more and more desperate as time goes by.

As we fly side by side right after hitting him once more, Hiccup turns to me and Toothless before we both glance back to it. "You think that did it?"

Out of the smoke, the dragon spreads wings so massive that it clouds the whole island in shadow. The grip that I have on Aury tightens but I swallow my dread and grin back at Hiccup. "I'd say yeah."

Hiccup turns to me but something else catches his eyes over my shoulder. "The others!" Eyes widening, I follow his line of sight to see the island being overrun by Nightmares that hadn't been there before.

"I got them!"

We don't wait for him to acknowledge my words. Instead we rush through, avoiding the dragon and heading straight to the island all the while bursting through a couple of Nightmares. Flying through that explosion, Aury stops in time to hover next to Akio. The sight of him stuns me; I've never seen him out of breath nor seen the energy clawing so viciously at his arms. It's not just encroaching his hands anymore but running up along his arms almost to his shoulders, and the energy isn't a transparent black anymore. It's taken a murkier color, more saturated, and whatever it is, it seems to be taking a toll on him.

"Akio…" His name leaves me with concern and dread. Up till now, I've known and seen that whatever power he'd been using was quite powerful, but it never crossed my mind that it would take such a levy from him.

"Focus," he grunted through gritted teeth and his hands still up at the ready. "We can't let them attack the villagers."

"We won't let them." Astrid's sudden call makes me glance over my shoulder to see the other dragons and their riders behind us and ready to fight along with us. No one has to say anything. As soon as the Nightmares charge, the dragons rush forward shooting off fire, spikes, igniting gas, and molten rocks at them. It's easier to fight off the horde but as we dwindle their numbers, a certain Nightmare comes into view.

It's standing off to the side atop a Ryu Dragon and watching us, like it knows not to come close and knows to leave the Nightmares it's controlling to deal with us instead.

 _I won't let you get off that easy._

"Akio, the blue Nightmare."

Mercurial eyes take one short glance at me before turning towards the one he knows I'm talking about. He stares at it for a second before his own eyes narrow. "He's keeping back."

"All we've ever seen it do is protect itself," I tell him, "It's never actually harmed us."

"That's what the Nightmares he controls with that ice are for: to be offensive."

"And to keep us away from it."

It's then that Akio shows off a rare smirk without sparing me a glance. It's not boastful or smug, it's taunting—playful, almost—and it fires something in his eyes that I can't describe. "Let's burst it's bubble, shall we?"

His enthusiasm exalts my own and I'm more than ready for whatever he has in mind. Without a word, he grabs onto Aury and leaps onto him, taking his seat behind me. A stern 'go' is all Aurelius needs to speed through the horde of Nightmares that block our path. We don't attack; our goal isn't them. Just as we're to rush through it, the cyan Nightmare stands from the Ryu Dragon in an attempt to flee again.

Akio's large hand falls heavily on my shoulder but it's not as heavy as his foot on my other. Grunting from his weight so suddenly on me, I sit as straight as I can to give him a tall enough ledge to propel himself off from. A wicked lopsided grin stretches across his face as he dives down with his right arm ramped back and the dark energy crackling from it. "I'm not letting you get away this time!"

Even in spite of it being quick enough to conjure up a shield of black ice, the magnitude of Akio's hit is enough to shatter through it and connect with the Nightmare. Black waves disperse on impact, the energy leaving his fist with a force that pushes the air back. Aury somehow holds in place as we watch Akio hit the Nightmare downward with such strength that upon hitting the ground, it bounces skyward with just as much force.

"Aya—up!" His words are disconnected but above the pressure created that pops my ears, I understand his meaning well enough.

"Aurelius!" The Spirit rushes upward, following the trajectory that the Nightmare took. As he flies, I press Ares parallel to his body so that one end protrudes a few feet in front of his head and begin to charge up the most powerful spell I know. The Firaga on Ares' end shines brightly once ready but by then the Nightmare recovered enough to conjure another shield as it begins to fall downward in our direction.

 _That's not stopping me._

I don't know why or how but Aury opens his mouth and instant after my spell fires and to my utter shock swallows my spell whole. Before I can even yell at him, he uses it to fire out even bigger magic of his own. The magma shot that comes from our combined magic shines a bright red, gold, and white and shoots straight through the shield and engulfs the Nightmare whole.

Aury then lets himself fall back in midair with his wings spread to avoid our running head first onto the explosion that comes after. It's hard not to hold on tightly to him as we continue to fall but he swiftly turns his whole body and hovers gently over the ground before landing. Knowing I'm safe now, my eyes immediately turn upwards to the blaze with its grandiose array of colors. As it dissipates, the Nightmare lingers in place, the color of it flickering like a light about to go out. But before it does a dark portal opens beneath it. The Nightmare glances at me, it's coloring fading faster and faster, before a single blue tear escapes it and falls, glimmering out of my sight. Before I can even understand what it just did, it sinks into the portal.

And in the blink of an eye, it's gone.

Thankfully, though, with it so are the Nightmares. With its absence, they're no longer infected and are more easily dealt with. Once that's over with the sound of fire and lightning take my attention as all heads turn skyward to where Hiccup and Toothless were still fighting. But just as another flurry of flames fills the sky, Hiccup and Toothless break through the dark clouds as they head downward and turn to shoot plasma into the dragon's open mouth. As it struggles with that pain, it spreads its wings to try and stop its fall but its wings are so tattered that they can't withstand its weight. They tear and it strikes the ground with such magnitude that it explodes on impact.

Aurelius tries to lift his wings to cover me from the wind that speeds past us but he's too slow. It takes him away and tumbles me off from his back. Strong hands capture my back and push me down hard enough to pin me against the floor and keep me grounded before I get blown away. But even as Akio and I are trying to hold out ground against the pressure exerted from the explosion, my eyes wander up to watch the explosion surging into the sky with a tiny speck of black hastily flapping its wings to outrun it. My heart stops when that black speck is hit by the dragon's tail and they begin to fall into the flames. I can't see what happens after that. The fumes follow the heat and block everybody's vision.

Silence falls after its dissipated and as Akio helps me up and over to the group, I see Stroick instantly make his way into the rubble to find Hiccup— _if anything's left of them_. It pains me every time I hear him call for his son over the soot that surrounds the island now. My heart lodges in my throat when I see him find Toothless and fall to his knees, but it's his words that make it sink to my stomach.

"My son...I'm so sorry."

"...no…"

The hand on my shoulder, the one that keeps me grounded still, tightens out of the blue. I don't turn his way but I do hear him gasp before gently whispering, "Aya...look."

My eyes come up to the Night Fury and widen as his wings unfurl to reveal Hiccup within his embrace. Stoick takes him swiftly in his arms, placing his ear close to his chest, and the sigh of relief that he takes sweeps through the entire crowd watching, myself included.

"He's alive! You brought him back alive!"

It's then that I finally feel my heart go back to its rightful place, it's beating calmer now. _Thank goodness, he's alright._

Akio voices my relief but adds something I had yet to notice. "He might've not made it back whole...but at least he's alive."

"What do you mean?"

He gives a nod towards Hiccup as Stoick picks him and bellows his orders to the villagers to scour for any surviving ships to take them back home. Shock comes over me at seeing his missing left foot, and although I only see it for a second, the bafflement remains even as we watch Stoick walk past us.

"H-His foot…"

A strong hand smacks me in the back, throwing my train of thought completely off the rails, and we both turn up to see Gobber smiling before it turns into a grin as he lifts his own missing hand. "Nothing that can't be fixed."

Oddly, that does ease a bit of the shock off of me. When Gobber tells us to get in on one of the few ships left with everybody else, I raise my hand dismissively and decline. "We'll reach Berk ourselves." My head turns up to where the other riders already took to their dragons in order to guide the ships out of the fog.

"A'right, lass." Gobber eyes Aury for a full minute before chuckling nervously, "Gold dragon 'ith no eyes. How strange."

That he thinks so makes me chuckle as well. I never noticed Aury's lack of eyes. His Spirit Emblem is too flashy to put too much important to that. Leaving that aside for now, I let go of Akio and take the few steps to Aury but when I try to climb over to mount him, my legs won't answer me. A frustrated sigh escapes me when I try forcing myself up with only my arms only to fall face first onto his back.

"Here." Hands slip underneath my arms and lock around my hips before effortlessly lifting my up onto Aury's back with my legs to one side. My eyes turn back to watch as Akio then lifts himself onto Aury as well but when he takes his seat, I notice the twitching of his arm.

"Are you okay?" The words are out before I can think anything of it.

"Yeah," he assures me, easily mounting Aury but grimacing as his legs move.

Despite that also worrying me, I don't pry further. We're all hurt from the battle after all. But after Aury takes off and we're soaring past the fog, a faint gleam on my wrist catches my eye. It's the bracelet and as it shines in the murkiness, I sense a very distinct pain crawling its way up from my hands all the way to my shoulders. It stings, almost as if knives were pricking at my skin threatening to break through it but never actually doing it.

It takes me a moment but when I finally do and glance back Akio isn't looking straight. His eyes are lost elsewhere, everywhere except at me. He's so lost in not looking at me that he doesn't notice that he's actually touching me to hold onto me as we fly—something he tends to avoid overall rather excessively. But his touch is not what bothers me, it's what I feel where he isn't that does.

 _I'm feeling only a fraction of what he is._ And that being so, I can't begin to imagine just what kind of pain he's suffering right now or what exactly was the toll for using so much of that power of his.

One of my hands reaches down from Aury's neck and rests on top of his. I feel his fingers twitch slightly but he doesn't move it away. I'm sure he wouldn't want to risk falling, after all.

"Let's take a little break once we're back."

I'm ready to retort to any excuse he gives me but to my surprise, he simply says, "A break sounds nice." That alone makes me smile and forget about the pain for a while.

* * *

It's strange to have my eyes closed. Especially when Akio asked me to close them. But in spite of me, I closed them when he said to and cupped my hands before me as well. When I feel something small fall into them, my eyes open wide and stare down at what now lays in my palms.

"This is..."

"It's what that blue Nightmare dropped before disappearing and I'm guessing what you've been looking for here," he responds. "And this time I'm not arguing with you." His hand, now much better—at least from what I can tell thanks to the bracelet—reaches up to his own ear and taps it. "This one's definitely yours."

I pick up the tiny teardrop in my hands with two fingers and bring it closer to me to inspect it. It's an earring made of dark sapphire and tear-shaped. It takes me a second to recognize it but when I do, my own hand reaches up to my ear to touch its pair.

 _It's the pair to Thea's earring._

A smile comes to me as I reach up to put it through my other earlobe. Once through, I glance over to Berk as we watch it from our perch on one of the rooftops of the many houses. It's curious to see this place filled to the brim with so many dragons now, but in a way it's also very fitting too.

Things have calmed down since we returned from the dragon's nest. It's only been a couple of days but it seems that things will be just fine here. Knowing that we have to leave, my mind wanders to Rinto.

 _You feel anything from the earring._

" _Yes. It is the same sensation that the bracelet and ring from before gave off."_

Then it's time to leave, I suppose.

When I tell him this, Akio agrees with a slight shrug to his shoulders and a lopsided smile as he watches Berk as well. "We were always meant to leave, anyway."

"True." A sigh escapes me even while my eyes stare blankly out in front of me and I think aloud. "Just wished we could stay to make sure Hiccup will be okay, you know?"

"I'm sure he will, no matter how he reacts to what's happened to him." My whole attention is taken when Akio stands from his seat on the roof and turns down to me. "I doubt he's one to sulk about a drawback like that for long."

"That's also true," I agree again, smiling as I rise up as well. "Let's get going then."

We're able to go about unnoticed for the most part. The villagers know us very well and even welcomed us as part of their own after we returned from the dragon's nest. But since they're all more preoccupied with the dragons that now live among them, we're able to get away into the forest where they first found us.

 _This should be far enough to avoid prying eyes. Okay, Rin—_

But before I can even think her name, the rustling of leaves catches my attention. Just as I spin on my heels, all I see is a flash of gold that tackles me down onto the floor before a tongue starts licking away at my face.

"Wai—bleh, sto— Stop it, Aury!" Laughter escapes me when Aurelius stops briefly only to look at me before starting up again with the licking.

"Great, we caught up to you!"

Pushing Aury away with a playful grin, I look up to find Hiccup and Astrid as they land a few feet away from us on Toothless and Stormfly, Astrid's new Nadder. They dismount while I get up and come up to us, but before he can even speak, the squeaking of metal springs brings my attention to his left leg that is now a metal replacement.

Hiccup follows my line of sight and picks his leg up while jokingly motioning it to me. "Guess I owed it to Toothless after his tail."

That he's joking about it so carefree makes me less uneasy and actually smile. "You're taking this rather well."

"No use worrying when it's not something I can change." Standing straight again, he shrugs his shoulders but as he does Toothless takes the chance to sneak underneath his arm to get Hiccup to hug his neck. "Not like I would, anyway."

"You guys followed us here?" Akio asks turning to Astrid.

"Not exactly," she corrects with her hands on her hips. "You guys left just when Hiccup woke up. He said he wanted to thank you but you were already gone by then. Thankfully, Aury here sniffed you guys out."

Aurelius smacks his head against mine and licks my face, getting me to chuckle. "That so?"

"I was surprised to see him back at Berk when my dad said you left," Hiccup admits, pointing back to his home. "You're not taking him with you?"

"I-I never thought about doing that," I reply, a bit perplexed at the suggestion. Had he been any normal dragon, I never would've thought it possible, but with him being a Spirit...

"Can we?" Akio asks. Although that question is spoken aloud, I can tell that he's asking me that directly. He's not sure about taking a Dream Eater away from its original world.

"Why not?" Astrid says with a light shrug of her shoulders. "It'll make it easy to travel. Besides—" she laughs, surely at Aury as he shove his head against me to get me to pet him. It's hard but I manage to hold back my laughter, but start petting his head all the same which gets him to seat down between Akio and I. "—he clearly likes you. You should definitely take him."

Akio and I share a glance at that suggestion. His eyes tell me—plead me—to say no. The fact that he's so vehemently against it only makes me more sure of my choice. _Who I am to deny him this torture?_

"You're right. I think we can afford to bring him along. You'll be great help, after all. Won't you, Aury?" Akio lets out a heavy sigh, his face turning sour, while beside me, Aurelius can't contain his excitement as he begins to jump around, leaning forward on his front paws. _He's such a dear._

"Well then, there's really just one last thing I want to say." Hiccup steps forward and stretches his hand out towards me, my eyes owlishly blinking back at his outstretched hand. "Thank you, Ayano, Akio. For everything."

A smile reaches my lips at hearing the earnesty in his voice. It's not different from his usual self but that it's directed at us warms me greatly. My smile turns into a grin as I shake his hand a bit too energetically it seems since it makes him hold onto his elbow. "No problem. Thank you as well, Hiccup." Taking my hand back, I jokingly salute him with two fingers as Akio and I start to turn away to leave, "Hope that when we meet again you'll be in your old man's place. Can't wait to see that!"

Hiccup chuckles nervously and Astrid only nudges his shoulder with her own. Thinking they're cute is the last thing that crosses my mind as we begin to lose them in the forest. Once we've walked a good ten minutes Akio let's out a heavy sigh as we both stop in a small clearing.

"The lizard, it had to be the liz—" Before he could continue his complaining, Aury ran up to him and licked his whole face before sitting down next to him. There was no keeping my laughter in with that one. Drool's literally dripping from his face and it sticks to his hands when he tries wiping it off. Glaring down at Aury who only happily pants with his tongue out while staring back, Akio spat out more drool that had gotten into his mouth. The glare turns to me then, "One of these days, we'll be eating fried lizard. I swear it."

"Yes, yes," I drawl on and chuckle, mindlessly reaching up to my ear and taking off the earring he'd given me. "Well, let's get go—hey!"

There's no stopping Aurelius from jumping in and snatching the earring from my hand. We both yell and run after him as he runs about. The panic only sets in when we hear him gulp it down. By the time we catch him and pin him down so that I can search his mouth, the earring is already gone.

Akio becomes furious when he hears this, his fist held aloft and encased in dark energy. "I'm killing this damn lizard!"

"Don't!" I cry out, instinctively tackling him off of Aury to get him as far away from his as possible. As we're fighting, a gagging noise gets our attention making us turn to see Aury heaving once before regurgitating a pile of white. Amongst the gross stomach juices, I spot the earring and quickly snag it away before he can eat it again. It's as I'm cleaning the nastiness away on my jacket's seam that I hear Rin say something that doesn't sit well with me.

" _It's gone."_

I instantly freeze. _What do you mean?_

" _The essence that I picked up earlier from it—the one that matched the bracelet and ring from before—it's gone."_

My anxiety wins over me and I'm about to tell her to check it again aloud, but before I can do that, a bright golden light shines beside us. The light is coming from Aurelius' mouth, much like the spells from before did, but this one doesn't destroy anything when he shoots it out. Instead, a single thin beam of gold flies out from the amount built up in his mouth and stops briefly in the middle of the clearing. The stream stops as if hitting a wall and spreads out—it's almost as if it's coloring an invisible wall a glittering gold—and by the time it's done, all that's left is a doorway.

A doorway like the ones from the Ring of the Fallen.

Aurelius sits next to the door just as carefree and glad as before, waiting for us to come closer. When Akio doesn't, I take the initiative and walk over to the door only to put my hand through. The same pressure that I've felt anytime we've crossed one of these doorways falls on it and at feeling it, my breath hitches.

Another hand comes next to mine and passes through the golden door for just a few seconds before flinching away. "This door…"

"Aury might just make our traveling easier." Giving him a sidelong glance, I give him a lopsided grin which he only returns with a taut line of his lips. "Guess Astrid wasn't so far off."

"Whatever," he says dismissively as he stands at the edge of the doorway. "Let's go already." But just when he's about to pass through, he comes back out and points at Aury with his thumb. "Your lizard isn't going to fit through here, by the way."

Casually measuring Aury using my hands and then comparing that to how wide the doorway is proves him right. My mind rushes through with ideas of how to get him through while I play with his face trying to squish it. He doesn't seem to mine but it's not like he realizes what problem he's made for us with this.

"Aury," I mumble mindlessly while thinking on and still squishing his face in my hands, "why can't you, like, be smaller or something?"

His giddiness from before suddenly stops as he retracts his tongue in and tilts his head at hearing this. All of a sudden, his body begins to glimmer a bright gold making me step away from him. As the glimmer becomes brighter, Aury begins to lose his form and becomes some sort of bodiless mass of glittering gold. It doesn't remain shapeless long though as it starts to fold into itself and become smaller and smaller. Soon the golden mass that is just floating in midair is maybe the size of a softball. And when the sphere doesn't change anymore, the shine from before dims to completely fades away.

The softball-shaped thing that's left behind floats in mid air and gently lets a pair of wings unfurl from it to flap and keep it afloat. The wings are thin, almost like a bird's wings, but gold like the rest of his body and from behind it, something falls from a thin golden string. It takes me a second to make it out as a tail as the puffy end of it takes a shape that I can't quite figure out—almost like a snowflake or a weirdly shaped star. The one thing I do see clearly is the Spirit insignia plastered right on the middle of its roundness.

"Aury?" It's wings flap enthusiastically as it jumps around before flying over to me and nuzzling against my cheek. Curiously, I take him in my hands and it snuggles there, his tail wrapping around my forearm lovingly. "Huh, guess you're more accommodating than I first thought."

Beside me, Akio heaves a sigh and pinches the bridge of his nose. He must surely have a headache with how useful Aurelius turned out ot be in spite of his not liking him. Wanting to lift the mood, I playfully hit my shoulder against his before taking off without notice and jumping headfirst into Aury's doorway.

This time it's the gold from the doorway that takes my eyesight away from me. Against my expectations, the jump into the doorway doesn't lead me to a fall but instead to step onto a pane of see-through glass. What I see through it is nothing but darkness, but when it suddenly cracks and begins to break, my heart stops. All at once the pane of glass shatters beneath me and gives way. My breath hitches and my arms cover my face to safeguard it from the shards that fly by me. But they don't hurt me. Instead what happened before happens this time around with the shards of the pane of glass. As they fly by me, they begin to change color and form a scene. One that appears so vague and familiar at the same time.

Computers cover the extent of one wall, numbers and words that I can't decipher the meaning to littering the screens, but despite my own interest, something presses me to walk away from them and continue forward. My sight wanders over to another wall where rows upon rows of glass tubes hang connected to metal piping that converge at the ceiling overhead before running through the walls to goodness knows where. Some are empty and see-through while others contain blackness that has no apparent shape. That dark matter makes me uneasy.

"You alright, Aya?" The voice takes me by surprise, not just because it's the first thing I hear but because I recognize it. That it's calling my name with so much concern shocks and baffles me, and makes me turn to face him.

But it's not Axel. The boy that stands before me, though, looks a lot like him except younger and spunkier. The boy standing next to him is just as much of a shock to see. This one looks so much like Saix that it's freaky; he's just as serious but also younger.

"Yes." The nervousness in me shows through my voice and my hands grasp at the collar of my dress as I lift my hand to point forward. "It's this way." As we continue on walking, confusion and bewilderment cloud my own emotions at seeing Axel and Saix so young and different in these memories. Anger and uneasiness are at the forefront. Anger at someone although I'm not sure at who, and uneasiness at being in this place, surely one that I shouldn't be at in the first place.

But as soon as we enter the next room, I recall why it felt so familiar walking through the place. The room we're in now is Ansem's study; this is Radiant Garden. The study seemed different to what it is now, to what I remember seeing back when we first discovered it a year ago. It's messier still, filled with books scattered everywhere but on their shelves and blackboards overflowing with cluttered and unintelligible gibberish. The place though seems to excite the teen versions of Axel and Saix as they hurry on to search the place.

Something tells me that I led them here on purpose, to a place none of us should be in, out of spite...towards Ansem. Discomfort clings to my chest which I myself holding tightly, bunching the collar of my dress with my hands even more. A presence suddenly takes my attention and incurs a chill down my spine before making me spin about on my heels. At one corner of the study more test tubes hang connected to the same pipes that disappear into the ceiling and away from the room. In them is more of that dark matter, shapeless and motionless.

Despite my initial dread, however, something pulls me to it. An attraction I could only describe as magnetic takes me to it, my eyes fixated on the dark that swirls inside the glass tube, the black turning into dark purples the longer I stare. My hands on their own drop their grasp on my clothes and hang in front of me before I put aside the dread that sticks to me and reach forward to press my hands against the glass. At first nothing happens, I only feel movement inside as it presses against the glass, but my eyes widen and my whole body freezes the instant tiny little hands form from the dark matter and press against mine. It's in the fraction of a second then that the glass cracks before it shatters and the darkness swallows me whole.

My hands rush to my eyes, wiping excessively against them and wanting to rid them of whatever fell on my face. Voices reach my ears but panic drowns them as my hands continue to claw at my eyes. The panic becomes tenfold when I feel something sink into them and behind my eyelids.

It's disgusting. It's dark. It's painful.

I want it off.

"—y—"

 _I want it off._

"—ya—"

 _ **I want it off!**_

"—yan—"

" **G-Get it off me!"**

" **Snap out of it, Ayano!"**

Akio's shout right in my face takes me aback and hauls me back from whatever freaking nightmare I just went through. My eyes are open and see— _I can see again—_ his swirling mercurial eyes as they stare dumbfounded and somewhat tinged with concern. His hands hold tight onto my wrists pulling them away from my face that only now do I notice burns around my eyes.

Nothing but silence surrounds us as my fast beating heart calms down and my breathing settles from the hyperventilating I had been doing. My panic finally settles when I lift my gaze to meet his again.

"W-What happened?"

He shakes his head slowly before letting go of my wrists. I'm tempted to reach up to make sure my eyes are alright but decide to wring one out with the other to resist that urge instead. "By the time I followed you down, whatever memory was in that thing had already rushed by. I found you standing here scratching at your eyes. What the hell did you see?"

"...nothing."

His brow furrowed unable to understand what I said. "What?"

This time I couldn't help my hand reaching up to gently touch just below my right eye. "I couldn't see anything. It all turned dark. Almost as if I was—" My breath hitches at the mere thought of what happened, of what that thing that jumped from the tube had done to my eyes—to the other Ayano's eyes.

A small nudge to my neck takes my attention as a gold tail comes into view. Aury curls up against me and his proximity makes the dread from before go away little by little until it's completely gone. After that terrible fright, I'm left numb. My eyes drift away from Akio and towards the next vacant doorway beside Berk's door. One of my hands reaches upward to Aury, petting him gently while keeping my eyes at the empty frame and blank insignia.

 _Open it._

It's not an order or request to anybody. Just two simple words that come to my mind. But when they do, Aury moves up and down—nodding, almost—before coming undone from me and flying over to the empty frame. A thin line appears horizontally on the middle of his body splitting the Spirit insignia—cutting the upside-down tear in half—and letting a toothy mouth open. From it, a small orb of light comes out, just like it had before from the relics we recovered, and enters the empty frame transforming it into another doorway.

A cold draft comes through, flakes of snow wafting towards Akio and I as we step closer to the frame and to Aury as he hovers before it. The wind faintly howls on the other side and more flakes come in falling on my fingertips as I raise my hand to catch them. Looking over the frame, a lone wooden staff laced in what looks like ice is displayed, the top end curved into a hook.

"Great, snow." Beside me Akio groans with his hands on his hips before giving me a sidelong glance and nodding towards the doorway. "Well, standing idly by won't make it any less favorable."

I mean to take a step forward with him when I hear him say this but I don't. I'm frozen in place by something I can't understand. My mind races wanting to have an answer. Perhaps it's just residual dread from before. Maybe it's just me internalizing what I saw too much. It felt real— _too damn real—_ and maybe that just made it worse. But no matter how much I try to convince myself that there's nothing for me to be afraid of anymore, fear still clings onto me.

That darkness taking over me— _blinding me—_ was something I have never felt before. It was disgusting, painful, and dark. So, _so_ dark. And knowing that something so tangible as that could happen again...it petrifies me.

"Hey." Akio's voice catches me so much by surprise that I jump in my own skin, the grasp that I didn't know I had on the collar of my jacket tightening with the scare. His eyes for once look down at me with more concern than anything else. To my astonishment, he doesn't ask if I'm okay or if I want to take a minute. Instead he takes a deep breath before stepping further towards the door and placing a hand on the frame. With his body half turned towards me, he nods towards the blizzard awaiting us on the other side of the door.

"Don't worry," he says softly. A half smile that I almost see reaching his eyes, does reassure me to my surprise. "I won't let you jump head in like an idiot again."

I can't help the chuckle that escapes me at his joke. Aury sways side to side and moves closer to me. Their being here helps calm me down more and more, and although the fear is still there, I still take the step forward alongside them.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _That took way longer than I thought it would. But it's here! This time CoU will be sharing slots again but this time I'll keep my promise and alternate uploads between stories._

 _On other news, this marks the end of their journey to Berk. Not only did they get another memory but also a new companion. A small little Spirit. Aurelius wasn't something planned from the beginning but after playing KH UnionX so much I decided to create a bit of a sidestory for that bugger. I suppose there's no harm in telling you that Aury actually comes from that time and that he belonged to a certain Master of Masters. That's as much as I'm telling you guys :D_

 _For now, I want to thank all who have read, reviewed, favorited, followed, and most important of all waited for this chapter. I will be sure to properly thank you next time but for now I hoped you enjoyed this chapter and that you stay tune for what's to come next._


	7. Memoir VII: The Terror of Separation

**Memoir VII:**

 _The Terror of Separation_

* * *

"Oof."

It's not even a moment after my feet touch the soft ground beneath us after jumping through the doorway that I sink through it. I'm waist deep in snow that chills my legs to the bone and it quickly proves pointless trying to pull myself out of it.

It's shortly after that I hear another body sink beside me and a quick glance over my shoulder confirms that Akio also fell through the softness of the snow. Cursing beneath his breath as he fruitlessly attempts to dig himself out tires me just from watching him.

"Keep digging," my voice rings out sardonically as I lay my arms before me to keep myself from sinking deeper. "I think you're almost out."

Groaning, he turns to me with a glare. "I don't see you doing much better."

"Because I can't." This situation feels familiar. I think I've had this problem with snow before but can't quite remember from where. Those thoughts run away when Aury hovers down to sit on the snow before me. He's not heavy in that softball form so he doesn't sink; that itself just peeves me. "You know…" A sigh drags out beside me—surely from Akio realizing how useless trying to get out by ourselves really is—while my sight is trained on the small golden ball in front of me. "You could help."

A line cracked across Aury's body again as it grinned before leaping face first into the snow and crunching through it. The open trail it leaves behind is all I have to look at as I feel the snow around my legs beginning to shift from him eating it. But within a few minutes, he's slowed down considerably and pops back out from his mole hole to spew out the pile of snow he had inside him. A bluish hue comes over his body as he sticks out his tongue.

 _Guess not._

"There has to be a way to get out of here," I hear Akio mumble beside me.

"If only—" I grunt as I try moving my arm down through the snow to grab Ares, "—I could reach…"

"You keep doing that and I'll—whoa!"

The sudden shout and flurry of the snow that falls by me gets me to glance over to where Akio was only to find something I didn't expect. Holding him over its shoulder is a large bear—or at least what I think is a bear until I hear it talking gibberish with the other bear-like thing that stands beside it. The one holding Akio grabs him tightly with one arm and no matter how much he struggles, it appears more than useless. They talk amongst themselves, one pointing at me, before the other reaches down to pluck me with ease out of the snow and shuck me over his own shoulder.

Aury doesn't bother fighting—if out of fear or concern of what they'd do to us isn't really clear—and comes to wrap his tail around my neck before seating on top of my head. The huge manbears take us away from there and all we see as we're taken are the footprints they leave in the snow.

Akio doesn't stop cursing or complaining which I plug my ears to and instead of freaking out, I stare at the footprints left behind by these things. They're not bears, there's no claw marks or pads; in fact, they actually appear more human than anything.

 _Rin, have you an idea of what they could be?_

" _As a matter of fact, I know what these creatures are."_

The statement takes me so much by surprise that I can't help but say aloud, "You do?"

" _They are Yetis, Master. Snow-dwelling creatures under the leadership of a single man."_

 _Who?_

" _Well, according to my knowledge, your kind knows him by many names: Kris Kringle, Pelznickel, most notoriously, Saint Nicholas—"_

 _Saint Nicholas…?_ The realization hits me like a truck seconds later. "You mean Santa Claus!?"

"What the hell are you spouting?" Akio yells as he tries glaring at me from his odd position.

"T-These things!" Grabbing the fur of the Yeti holding me like a sack of potatoes, I push myself up to look at Akio. "They're Yetis."

"Yetis?" He shakes his head incredulously. "How the hell do you know that?"

"Rin—" Remembering how I refrained from telling him about Rinto before, a groan escapes me at finding myself annoyed at that choice. "My powers, genius. I figured out what these things are with it and that Santa Claus is their leader."

"What, Santa Claus!?"

" _Actually, master."_ My attention is split between Rinto and the sudden noise of machinery that comes behind us that, because of the Yetis, we can't see. _"In this world, he goes by North."_

* * *

It's a grand place wherever the Yeti's brought us. Lit up to the brim with lights and toys flying overhead as if they had a life of their own. It's incredible to say the least and it leaves both Akio and I speechless as we're inadvertently given the tour of the place. The deeper we go into the place the more Yeti's appear along with tiny little creatures with bright clothes and bells at the ends of their pointy hats.

 _Elves._ And not very bright elves by what they're left to do while the Yeti's make hundreds upon hundreds of toys in what I'm assuming is a workshop. Turning to Akio, he's gawking at the grandiosity of the factory then at the elves with narrowed eyes before his mercurial gaze comes to me perplexed.

"I thought the elves made the toys," he mutters under his breaths, loud enough for me to hear.

My gaze wanders back to said creatures and see them electrocuting themselves by accident with the Christmas lights they're playing with. "I'd say it's for safety reasons that they don't."

As our tour continues, we leave the workshop and are taken to a much less occupied area. It's a few minutes into this new place that the Yeti's suddenly handle us roughly again as they take us in their hands and throw us. There's many complaints coming from Akio as the Yetis carelessly toss us onto the floor. Before I can voice my own complaints though, we both turn up to the Yetis as they smack the door to what I assume to be a cell. They mumble gibberish to themselves as they go about locking the door and leaving us to our devices. We both run up to the door, gripping the bars to look outside of the lockup they put us in. There are very few other cells but they're all empty from what I can tell.

 _Maybe we're the only ones here._

" _Quite possibly._ "

Hearing Rinto speak brings my mind back to the fact that she seems to know a lot about this particular world. Before I can ask her, though, Akio speaks up just enough for me to hear. "You think they're gone?"

"Can't hear their massive steps, so I'm guessing yeah." As he pulls back, he rummages through something beneath his heavy cloak—wonder what he has all hidden there—before taking out a pair of tiny pins. _Is he…_ "You know how to pick locks?"

"It's not that hard." He kneels before the door, placing the two longer ends of the pins inside the cell's lock and fidgeting around with them. "Just give me a minute."

A hum of agreement comes from me as I stand back and let him do his thing. If anything, this gives me time to talk things with Rinto.

" _What is it, master?"_

 _How did you know about the Yetis and San—I mean, North? Have you been here before?_

There's a bit of quiet before she replies to me. _"I believe so."_

 _What do you mean by that?_

" _You may or may not have already speculated this but you are not my first master."_

My brow furrows at that thought; perhaps, I have had that thought back when I first came to interact with her. She knew a mighty lot about how to instruct me about using my powers. Not only that she knew how to reconstruct that which was taken from me by whom she calls her 'maker.' It does escape me sometimes that she has had others to serve and that others have had the powers of my Deceiving Eyes before me.

 _So you're telling me you've been to this world before with one of your former masters?_

" _It is what I am assuming with what knowledge I harbor of the place."_

 _You sound like you're not that sure._

Again, she takes her time to answer. _"Although not many, my old masters have been world travelers as yourself and did use my powers in order to help them achieve their goals. Aside from yourself, only one other allowed me the sentience or freedom, for that matter, to advice them as you have. The rest of them didn't. During those occasions, I was aware of where I was being used and for what purpose but could not interact with the world or them. The knowledge of places stays, however, and if I cannot recall exactly for what, when, or why, I surmise that it was with that latent sentience that I retained the information of this world in particular."_

It made some sense, I suppose. There's different stages to how sentient she is. Compared to now, I remember when I felt Rinto's subtle presence anytime I used my powers a year or so ago. Back then, I couldn't hear her voice. Not until my first fight with Hotaru. Accepting her then made her the sentient being she is now. But as I go through that in my head, another question comes up.

 _Who was the other one that allowed you sentience?_

" _My first master."_

The tone of voice that she said that with strikes me to my core. It was so saddened and loaded and that was just from merely mentioning them. Feeling that heaviness still lingering doesn't let me ask who exactly that person was.

Thankfully the clicking of a lock takes my attention away from Rinto and I leave her to herself. Akio stands back up from his place while putting his tools away and gently pushes the cell door open, before giving me a boastful grin. Giving it to him this once, I congratulate him on the good work under my breath before raising my fisted hand up to my shoulder and close to him. Akio stares at it for a moment before scoffing and softly knocking his own fist against mine.

"Let's go," he calls out and quickly steps out of the cell.

Following close behind, I beckon my powers to hide us as we sneak out of the lower floors of the place. It paid off in the end how much attention I was putting to where we were going; it makes the trek back to the toy shop quicker than it otherwise would've been. Unlike before, there aren't any Yetis working and only very few elves left apparently cleaning up. And since they're not precisely the sharpest tools in this shed, we sneak past them quite easily while being hidden by my masks.

But just as we're heading through one of the empty corridors, my ears catch the sound of massive footsteps stomping toward our direction. Shoving Akio back with my hand on his chest, I push us against the nearest wall, leaning as close to it to avoid any contact with the distinct figures that stride through.

One of them is a large man with white hair and beard and tattoos marking his arms. I briefly notice the ones on his forearms saying 'naughty' and 'nice' moments before he puts on a heavy coat. As he leads on he's bellowing out orders to the Yetis that follow behind the group, saying to guard the North Pole well while they're at the Tooth Palace. A large rabbit with a very distinct accent follows closely after him, a boomerang holstered at his back. Another is a winged woman dressed in very colorful green, purple, and yellow attire. Tiny hummingbirds follow quickly behind her, too fast for me to see but enough to recognize. A short and stout man hurries after them, some sort of golden sand trailing after him of the same color as the rest of him. The last one is a young man that looks to be maybe Akio's age. White hair adorns a pale face and bright blue eyes and in his hands he holds a staff covered in what looks to be ice.

They rush quickly past us heading towards a completely different direction from where we came. Once they're out of our sight, I let go of Akio and we both sigh at how close that had been.

"They came from over there." His call for my attention and his pointing finger lead us to another room. Since I don't see anybody in it, we close the doors behind us before I release the mask hiding us. Now that I feel a tiny bit safer, I let my eyes wander through the room we're in now.

The first thing that I notice is that half of it is covered in snow and ice. Workbenches are scattered around and all with large chunks of ice sitting on them. To the side, there's shelves with many toys and even a pine tree that's decorated— _a Christmas tree?_ All that pales in comparison when I realize what the chunks of ice really are as I get closer to the workbenches. Sculptures. A myriad of them. They vary in size and shape but they all remind me of toys except, well, they're ice. A crunching beneath my feet as I step closer catches my attention and it's there that I find a broken ice toy. The piece I pick up looks sort of like the back of a train.

 _How curious._

"Must be Santa's workshop." When I turn over to Akio, he's coming over to where I am after he's seemingly done inspecting the shelves on the other side of the room. In his hand, he holds a large crystal sphere with gold etchings on the top and bottom of it. It's empty but the intricate carvings make it a sight.

"North, you mean," I correct him as I place the broken toy on the workbench. "They sure left in a hurry."

"From they're panicked faces, I say there's some serious trouble in that Tooth Palace place he mentioned." The moment he says that something odd happens to the sphere. Snowflakes begin fluttering inside it as a faint light shines before an image blurs into existence. It's gone as soon as it comes and disappears in a new flurry of snow inside the sphere. Caught off guard, Akio drops it. It thumps but doesn't break as it hits the floor; instead it bursts into a whirl of color and radiance to create what looks like a portal before us.

The moment I turn over to him, Akio straightens his cloak to hide his embarrassment and turns to look at the portal. "I'm guessing that thing will take us to the so-called Tooth Palace."

"Could be," I say, hiding the chuckle that wants to burst through by covering my mouth with my hand. Unwrapping himself from around my neck, Aury flies over to the portal and passes through without a problem. A scoff escapes me at seeing his nonchalant approach. "Well, at least we know it's safe."

Not waiting for his answer, I step through it. The pressure around me changes almost like when we go through the pathways made by the memories, but compared to that these are much shorter in time and before I realize it, I'm standing on solid ground again. In front of me stand towerse suspended every which way and stemming from a core that I can't pinpoint. The towers are glamorously made of natural and rose golds and encrusted jewels that gleam in the faint sunlight. A buzzing catches my attention and my gaze lifts up to see the fairy from before zipping back and forth in a frenzy.

"What happened here?" Akio's whisper beside me brings that question to the forefront of my mind. Looking about, there's a mess of what seems to be black sand. Contraptions that appear to be from inside the towers are broken, whatever was inside them now gone.

The screeching of metal against metal wracks my ears and makes me cover them as we both turn up to see a sleigh make a hasty and perilous attempt at landing. From it, the other four from before step out with North calling out to the fairy. "Tooth! Are you alright?"

"They—they took my fairies." Her voice is soft yet loud enough for Akio and I to hear what she's saying from where we are a level below them. Her mind seems to be racing and she rushes around trying to find something that is quite obviously gone. "A-And the teeth, all of them. Everything is gone." Her fluttering wings start to slow down as she starts descending onto one of the towers, three of the others rushing to her side as she sits there, defeated and disheartened. "...everything."

It's from the only one who's left—the ice guy—where a tiny hummingbird comes out and rushes to the fairy's—Tooth—side. "Oh goodness! One of you is alright."

"I have to say this is very, very exciting." The voice that suddenly rings out through the whole place sends shivers down my spine and makes me step back to be closer to Akio. Our heads begin turning each and every way trying to locate the source of it but it's almost as if it's everywhere and nowhere at the same time. "The big four all in one place. I'm a little star-struck!"

" _Master, above."_ Heeding Rinto's advice, I catch the sight of a tall man obscured by shadows as he steps out of them to let himself be visible to the group below him. His mere presence...something about it doesn't sit well with me at all. Instantly and without even a warning, I mask our presence with my eyes and doing my best to keep us out of sight from them and that man.

He taunts them, boasting how he tricked them into coming all together, and that only ignites the fury of Tooth as she chases after him. The man evades her easily by somehow using the shadows to move around the place. When the man mentions the faux threat of a quarter under a pillow, something in my head clicks.

Santa Claus—North. The tooth fairy—Tooth. The rabbit man—the Easter Bunny. The little gold man—Sandman. And when the tall shadow man says that he's tired about hiding beneath beds, I know who he is—the Boogeyman, Pitch. My gaze falls on the young man that stays at the ready but away from the rest of the group. _But then who's he?_

"Hang on, is that Jack Frost?" _Jack Frost?_ "Since when are you all so chummy."

"We're not," Jack corrects him.

"Oh good, a neutral party." Pitch appears where Jack is but strangely doesn't attack. "Then I'm going to ignore you but you must be used to that by now."

Out of the blue, the bunny and Tooth charge at Pitch only to be driven back by a dark horse made up of what looks to be black sand. My suspicions are right when Pitch says that it's a dream turned into a nightmare. The dark sand that he sweeps off of the horse and falls to the ground slowly swirls into mounds that begin to take a form that I recognize. Those are Nightmares, and not only that, their eyes are glowing red. They're infected as well.

Even when Pitch begins to talk about the dark ages, I can't possibly pay him any attention. Not when the Nightmares he conjured, the Keeba Tigers, take to scanning the area they were summoned. When they lay their eyes on us, my blood runs cold. I keep repeating to myself that they can't see us. I've been hiding ourselves for the most part of this whole encounter. And yet I can't shake the awful feeling that they're staring straight at us.

"Aya." Akio's whisper is subtle and the quietest I've ever heard him talk. His fingers brush against the back of my hand as if to make sure he has my attention. "Are you hiding us?" Not willing myself to talk, I nod which strangely makes him curse under his breath.

It's when the Keeba Tigers begin growling in our direction that Pitch looks our way. His pale eyes gaze at us concentrating on nothing before a lopsided grin comes to him. Raising his hand, he snaps his fingers and what occurs from it strikes me to my core. A rough sensation I've never felt before wracks my head and whole body leaving me numb and disoriented. But even that is not enough to not see as the illusion my mask created shatters into thousands of small glittering shards of glass.

"Fetch them."

The Keeba Tigers disappear in the blink of an eye. They're faster than any Dream Eater we've faced this far. But even when I do manage to see them in the moments they fractionally slow down in, my body is still too shaken from whatever he did to break my mask. I can't react fast enough to avoid the fury of attacks that they deliver when they reach our platform.

None of them hit me. Akio makes sure of it when he shoves me off the platform and away from the many tigers that leap towards us. The fact that I'm falling doesn't hit me; it's not even on my mind. What is racing through it is the thought that Akio's overwhelmed, he won't be able to fight them back all by himself.

 _I need to get to him._

In that instant, my nerve comes back to me. "Aurelius!" The Spirit unravels its tail from around my neck and in my peripheral all I see is the golden light from before engulfing him before he flies beneath me to catch me. But instead of a Ryu Dragon, I find myself straddling a golden Pegaslick. Aury doesn't give me time to question anything and rushes skyward out from the fall we'd been thrown to. We reach the over towers to find Akio fighting with North and the Easter Bunny alongside him as Jack stays back with the Tooth Fairy to protect her from the Nightmares threatening them.

"Hit them hard, Aury!" Quick to heed my words, he summons a string of lightning that hits the Keeba Tigers but isn't powerful enough to pop them out of existence. With the help of North and the Easter Bunny we manage to dwindle their numbers a little but when that happens, a neighing rings loud behind me. All I see is a flash of the dark horse rushing past me and striking the two of them back before charging at Akio. I'm not fast enough to warn him and neither can I attack it when he knocks him off his feet to pummel him repeatedly with its hoofs. The tigers take leave then, one snatching his cloak and taking Akio with them back to Pitch's side. My mind races and I hurry Aury to reach him but before I can even get close, the dark horse impedes my path.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, dear." My eyes turn to Pitch and at what he motions beside him. One of the Keeba Tigers has Akio pinned, its claws digging deeper and tearing at his cloak as a warning.

My hands pull back at Aurelius' neck to halt him and he stops in his tracks feet away from Pitch and Akio, the dark horse between us. Watching Akio struggle uselessly turns my breathing heavy and throws me into a panic. The fight from before left him too exhausted and the Keeba Tiger on him isn't about to move.

Pitch turns to the others then with a chuckle of his own. "Who would've thought you would be scared enough about my little show that you would call a Rescuer."

There isn't a point putting much attention to his words. Anger and panic are eating away at me too much. I have to get Akio back. "Let him go," I growl through gritted teeth, my eyes searing from my powers leaking, "...or else."

A mocking laughter rings through the palace. "I sincerely doubt your threats hold any bearing, my dear. You may be a Rescuer but those powers you have are meaningless when you obviously have no idea what you're doing with them." An odd noise that starts ringing like a hiss comes from the towers as they begin to crumble and lose their splendor. _It's almost as if it's dying off._

"In any case, it's too late. Take a look," Pitch says turning back from watching one of the towers crumbling, "it's happening already."

"What's going on?" Jack mumbles under his breath.

"They don't believe in me anymore." The utter shock and disbelief in the Tooth Fairy's face tells me just how much of a problem that is.

That being said, it's somewhat hard to think that their existences hinge on such fickle notion as that of children believing in them. But by the looks of it, it's something powerful enough to render what had been a glorious palace into a rusted old heap of metal towers. And not only them but if things turn dire, everything good they stand for would vanish too. Things that Sora, Riku, and I are trying to protect as well. The light, everything good— _our friends._

"Soon there will be nothing but darkness, fear, and me. It's your turn not to be believed in."

His words hit some kind of nerve as then and there, the others begin their attack. The Easter Bunny goes first throwing his boomerang Pitch's way. It's easily avoided but seeing how he's outnumbered Pitch retreats on his dark horse. What takes my attention is that he calls for the Keeba Tigers to follow him and one of them takes Akio's arm in its jaw before rapidly hurrying alongside the rest of its hoard. "After them, Aury!" He doesn't hesitate. Aurelius takes a nose dive to follow after the Nightmares and although he's quick, he can't seem to catch up to them. The Easter Bunny throws out something that explodes into colorful smoke screens but they do nothing to deter Pitch or his Nightmares. Just when I think he's cornered, he disappears into a dark nook of the mountainside. But it's not until a portal for the Nightmares appears that my blood starts running cold and my beating heart quickens to insane speeds.

My words urge Aurelius to go faster, to catch them before they disappear into the portal, but he can't. He's not fast enough. Without thinking it through, I stand from my seat on Aurelius and scan the area quickly before I jump on ahead, jumping and running as fast as I possibly can from shadow to shadow to reach him. As I go, I catch quick glances of Akio as he furiously tries to unlatch the tiger's jaws from his arm.

The shadow of a tower is high enough to allow me a leap that could reach him if he stretches his hand. "Akio!" His name is all that I say when I take the leap before reaching out with my hand. He sees me— _I know he does!_ —but all I see is his mercurial eyes widening before he speaks. And it's his words as he starts sinking into the portal that strike me hard and halt my heartbeat dead cold.

" **Stay back, Aya—"**

And just like that, he's gone.

And I'm falling.

"Watch out!"

It's not the sudden cry but the cold arms that catch me midfall that I feel first and foremost. When I force my panicking mind to calm down, it's Jack Frost who caught me and slowly lowers me back onto the floor safely. Releasing me from his grip, his bright blue eyes stare right into mine as he asks, "Are you alright?"

"I am. Thanks," I mumble, still in shock and disbelief. An anguished neigh makes me look up to Aurelius who comes rushing down towards us as he transforms back. I meet him with open arms and tightly embrace the ball as he wraps his wings around my shoulders and water begins to leak from seemingly nowhere. _He's crying._ That only makes me hold him tighter to alleviate both our heavy hearts. "It's okay, Aury. You did your best. But don't worry, we'll get him back."

"Yes, we will." The booming voice that carries such a big accent takes me by surprise when it's right there next to me. A large hand slaps me on my shoulder and almost throwing me off of my feet. It freaks me out a little—I won't lie—when I see North assuredly smiling down at me. "It's going to be alright, child. We'll bring your friend back."

I'm about to oppose that, saying that they don't know what kind of beasts the Nightmares Pitch is able to summon are, when I'm cut off by Aury pulling away from me to fly over to the Sandman. He receives Aury with a warm smile and open hands as the Spirit sits on them more than comfortable to be there. As North walks me over to where Sandman and the Easter Bunny are, the latter asks the former, "You know the kid?"

Images made of sand appear above Sandman's head in rapidfire. Out of the bunch, I catch only a few, among them the images of a bear and an 'X' catch my eye. They're gone before I can really make out any clear idea of what he just tried to charade to his companions. It's not until I voice my confusion that the Easter Bunny explains it to me.

"Sandman said that he created that furball of yours. Called it a Dream Eater."

"That's what he is," I agree. Frankly, though, I find it odd that he was created by someone else. Wanting him back at my side, I reach out my hand towards Aury and Sandman. The moment he sees me do that, Aurelius leaves Sandman and returns to me lying down on my open palm before snuggling back on his perch on my shoulder. "I thought Spirits came from the dreams of people. No one told me they could be artificially made."

"Makes sense." North folds one arm over the other in front of him, one hand stroking his white beard as he thinks of something through his head before giving a sidelong glance to me. "Sandman takes care of dreams. That is dream."

"You're not wrong..." But it does bother me that complete strangers know more about him than I do. Then again, I was also a complete stranger to him up to a few weeks ago. That brings my attention back to Sandman. "If I may ask, who did you create Aurelius for?"

Images start again but I can't discern anything from them. It's sad but I'm damn horrible at charades. North, though, seems to know exactly who it is. "Ah, that old man," he lets out a grand bellow of laughter at saying that, "you and him are good friends, no?" Sandman nods with a smile on his face.

It bothers me that they forget so easily that I'm right here and can't understand the stout, little dream man at all. "Who?"

"He never gave any name when Sandman introduced us," the Easter Bunny explains while he perches himself on the nearby rock shadowed by a blossoming tree. "Sandman referred to him as 'the Gazer,' a man that can look into the future."

"A what?" _People like that exist?_

"Yes, Gazer visited ages ago." North gives a nod, his gaze quite off from the looks of it as if remembering some kind of far off time. "The first time we fought Pitch. He helped us banish him."

"And you created Aurelius for him?" Sandman nods and I see one image above his head: a box wrapped and topped with a bow. "A gift. A thank you gift?" His nod is enough to confirm that. My hand reaches up to pet Aurelius then and wonder just how he got separated from his original master. And also why he chose to follow us, follow me.

"Why would Pitch take the teeth?"

 _Guess I'm not the only one with questions._ Jack and Tooth had been off talking, the heaviness of what occurred to all of us still lingering. They lost the fairies, and what mattered to the Tooth Fairy most of all: the children's teeth. Something, I overhear her say, that holds the most important childhood memories of the children which they protect. And when someone needs to remember what truly matters, they help them.

They lost such an important thing. And I lost Akio because of my stupid powerlessness. My hands reach down to grip tightly at the hems of my skirt, my knuckles turning white at the mere thought of it. In spite of how much we bicker, I'm still worried. And I can't hide it. It's what wrings my heart, making breathing heavier. I may not know much of that asshole but he's come to help me in all this in his own way. And seeing him disappear like that just reminds me of how I lost Haruka the year before. And although I know he's older than either of us and has a power I've never seen before— _I think—_ I also know that everybody gets scared.

 _We have to get him back, Rinto._

" _We will, master,"_ she assures me as a warmth spreads from the serpent tattoo that lays over my heart all across my body. _"But to do that—to retrieve him from the Boogeyman—"_ Tooth's sudden outcry takes my attention briefly as the feathers from her body began to fall and the grand mosaic that's on the mountainside begins to lose color and cracks.

"The children—we're too late."

"No!" North exclaims, brandishing his two blades outward in defiance. "No such thing as too late!" He mutters under his breath, the sabers shaking which makes me take a few steps back. But when his face lights up, the one step he takes towards me is enough to let his blade fall just inches away from my nose as he points it at me. "Idea!"

The heart attack he almost gave me starts to slow down as he points the blades to all of us in turn while telling us of his plan to retrieve the teeth ourselves.

"Excuse me?" I mumble under my own breath at the absurdity that the Tooth Fairy only emphasizes herself. He doesn't listen. No, they just brag instead about how they deliver presents and hide eggs in a single day.

"And Jack, if you help us, we will get you your memories."

There's no hesitation from him. "I'm in."

"As for little Rescuer." It takes me a second to realize that he's talking to me; him looking in my direction, me pointing at myself, and him nodding is what clears that for me. The name doesn't sit well with me and not just because I have no idea why them or Pitch called me that either. North fails to notice my disquietness though. "Best bet to rescue your friend is to come with us. And, if up to it, help us along the way."

Rinto chuckles a bit at hearing both that and the groan I heave at the back of my mind. _"—it may appear that our best shot is to aid the Guardians in their endeavors."_

It's not a bad exchange, though, when I give myself a moment to think about it. The point of me coming here to all these worlds in slumber is to find the sleeping memories of the other Ayano. And if the Tooth Fairy does indeed have the teeth of all children then there exists the odd chance that she might have hers too.

 _I'd be getting two birds with one stone._ But first and foremost, my priority is to get Akio back. And to do that I need their help to get to Pitch.

Heaving a sigh, I reach up to my ponytail before tightening it. "Count me in." Their voices as they plan out on how they'd collect the teeth are drowned as the heaviness of the golden bracelet hits me. So long as I have this, I will know if Pitch hurts Akio. I can assure myself that he's fine with this so long as it doesn't glow.

 _And if he dares hurt him, then the one who's going to be the most afraid is him._

* * *

Being surrounded by these god awful Nightmares was getting on his nerve. They weren't allowing him to go anywhere. Out of spite and annoyance, Akio let the dark energy engulf the soles of his foot and his fists before stomping down, letting the energy discharge in a circle.

The Keeba Tigers that had been watching him since they brought him to Pitch's lair cowered in fear. Although they growled at him still, they backed off leaving him enough space to finally breath his own air. Taking a deep breath to calm his riling nerves, he looked over the dark caves that Pitch called home. From the ceiling, large cages hung like stalactites overhead and inside them the Baby Tooths scampered noisily about yearning to be freed. Beneath them were mountains upon mountains of the stolen children's teeth Pitch stole from the Tooth Palace and rummaging through them were his dark horses, almost as if looking for something through them. Akio didn't know to what end he'd taken them but presumed that it had to do with the flickering lights in the globe that stood in the middle of the cavern.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Akio glanced over his shoulder to see as Pitch rose from the shadows. The Keeba Tigers made way for him to walk to Akio's side, a couple dark horses from before neighing at either of their sides. "How they flicker out, they're hopes and dreams withering alongside them."

Akio remained aloof, his gaze not straying from the globe before them. "It's none of my business."

"Ah, yes, the _other_ neutral party." Pitch clasped his hands before him and took a few steps forward before turning to face Akio. "Teobaldo sent you, correct?"

Akio had only heard the name of the man he bargained with once. It had been his introduction which he didn't let settle before he hung the proverbial carrot in front of Akio's face. A carrot he was all too aware could very well be a trap. _And yet I took it._ It beat wasting time in that place— _that lonesome, bleak sanctuary_ —knowing the man who'd done so much harm to him and his family was still alive and free.

"He contracted me. What's your connection to him?" When Pitch didn't answer, it wasn't much of a surprise to him. Akio hadn't unexpected anything less. But he also knew that pride ran deep in the Boogeyman. Giving him a boastful grin, Akio went for a low blow. "I suppose if you're bargaining with a mortal then even the mighty Boogeyman has he's shortcomings."

The ground beneath Akio shook out of the blue as from the cracks black sand spurt out before the dark horse formed. The space it took as it rushed forward made him fall back onto a sit. The horse took the chance and placed his hoofs and full weight on his chest, bringing him fully down against the ground.

"I would watch my mouth if I were you, boy." Pitch's voice turned an octave lower and Akio's eyes were drawn to the shadows as they encroached closer and closer to where he laid. "That man doesn't own me. We merely saw an opportunity that would mutually benefit us. So I have to begrudgingly admit that not all humans are useless." He ran a hand over the mane of the dark horse that pinned Akio, the black sand running through his fingers as a malicious smirk came to his face. "He did teach me a marvelous trick, after all." With a wave of his hand, Pitch made the horses become sand again which drifted off to the cages of the Baby Tooths. The shadows retreated as well and allowed Akio some room from the oppressiveness that had been infecting the air.

"If that's the case, what did he receive in exchange?"

A neighing rose through the air as a particular dark horse galloped to Pitch. Akio watched it drop one of the golden teeth cartridges into Pitch's open hand, the broad smirk not disappearing as he waved it carelessly in his hand. "Nothing of value to me."

He gave Akio his back before tossing the cartridge into the air. Before it had the time to fall back into the piles beneath, a dark portal appeared in the blink of an eye before a large, cyan hand with black cracks lurched out to take the cylinder. The hand engulfed the tiny cartridge and didn't waste any time taking it back with it through the portal. But even after it was gone, the portal remained and that fact gave Akio a rather bad feeling.

It wasn't until something else emerged from the portal to stand before them that his stomach knotted. _I hate being right._

A metallic shade. That's all he could think of when laying eyes on the much too humanoid Nightmare. It was a dark shade of blue, like blue steel, and its body was countless sharp edges eerily coming together to appear human. A tight black cloak came around its arms and a hood hid its face in shadows; the cloak ran tightly down to the middle of his chest before spreading freely from there. Darker steel with the same blue hue protruded from his lower body, numerous spikes that made some sort of heavy sarong. What caught Akio's attention most was what it had over its left shoulder. The pauldron over its shoulder was a black color, with four strange canisters attached to it and glowing a bright cyan color, and what fell behind its back was what looked to be a black extension barrel.

 _A rifle's barrel._

"Not bad." Pitch admired the Nightmare that stood immobile before them, its arms at its sides inhumanly reaching to its thighs with hands much too skinny. "This one is a much sliker form to say the least. Much better than the beast he sent last time." Chuckling, he turned with a lopsided grin to Akio. "Quite the show of gratitude for the small price paid, don't you think?"

That he sounded so knowledgeable about the Nightmare before them frightened him and Akio couldn't help the question that he asked. "You know what these Nightmares are?"

"Yes, but you underestimate these masterpieces, boy." Pitch motioned towards the Keeba Tigers, that cowered with their heads low, and his own dark horses. "Those feeble nightmares pale in comparison to the works of art Teobaldo creates. Mine may feed from fear and panic, but they cannot embody them, for you see, only a physical vessel can overcome the limits a mere surrogate can't. Only a vessel consisting of body, heart, and soul can feed _and_ adapt to negative emotions, and in turn become an exemplar type of nightmare."

"What could be worse than a nightmare?"

"Why, Night Terrors, of course."

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _Yes! I finally updated this story before more than a couple of months went by since my last update! Well, it's a bit hard to write right now with everything that's going on which drains me and my time and inspiration. But I'm coming through strong._

 _This chapter may have been a bit shorter, word count-wise but it was an okay length of 16 pages. I just didn't want to rush into other things and not have a proper place to end the chapter. Besides, I liked how it ended :D The identity of those pesky Nightmares Aya and Akio have been fighting all this time has been revealed and so far, by my count anyway, 5/6 have appeared (mentioned or brief appearances like the cyan hand from the end of this chapter)! But those 6 are important! Here's to the future where you'll learn what they are!_

 _Well, enough of that! Right now I want to give a huge thanks to all the readers that keep up with the highly inconsistent updates of this story. Thankfully, this chapter came sooner than before :)_

 _Also, I want to thank the lovelies that reviewed but didn't have the time to answer to:_

 _= **Antex - The Legendary Zoroark** : I'm glad you liked the last chapter. And sadly, no Frozen, or other Disney films for that matter. From now onwards, they'll be exclusively Dreamworks. But your 2nd hunch was on point! And don't worry, Ayano's visions are just gonna get crazier and more psychological! _

_= **Aviantei** : Sorry I haven't had time to reply to you. Nevertheless, here's a late reply. I love writing battle sequences since I have to do so much research to do them and it's fun research at that! Thanks, hopefully I did okay balancing canon/og stuff in this one too since I put a big chunk of the canon this chapter :o As for Akio's powers, they'll be explained very likely after the RotG arc ends I we go into the next one. Don't worry about not knowing UnionX. What most I'm using is from the cinematic that was released in 2.8. Aury's ball form was actually inspired by Timcanpy's! So I suppose that's something familiar for ya xD _

_Well, for now I'm leaving you guys here. I've got another story to update and some BnHA OCs to work on x3 So for now, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and stay tuned for the next update!_


	8. Memoir VIII: When Fairytales Vanish

**Memoir VIII:**

 _When Fairytales Vanish_

* * *

My fingers fiddle with the golden band around my wrist more out of nervousness than anything. The Guardians took me in without a second thought after I agreed to help but in all honesty, I'm doing this out of necessity. Despite knowing it's not the best thing to say, I'd rather be searching for Akio. As things stand, however, I can't do that by myself. My knowledge about this world is limited at best and by the looks of it, this is one of the bigger ones in existence.

That much is pretty clear during our first stop. With the Tooth Fairy directing us, the plan is simple: get the teeth and leave presents. _Basically her work._

" _It might sound simple but like she also mentioned it concerns over millions of children whose teeth must be collected overnight."_

Rinto's point is more than blatant and as we disperse to start our hunt, I'm left at the rooftop alone with Aury. Or at least I thought so. Frost hangs around for a moment literally hovering a few feet ahead of me and beyond the rooftop. He taps his wooden staff over his shoulder pensively before he says, "You sure you can do this?"

"You doubt I can?" I bite back a bit more on edge than usual.

That for some reason makes him scoff and he shakes his head. "With that energy, no. But you don't have a way to move around like we do."

This time it's my turn to scoff. My hand reaches up to Aury who sits comfortably on my shoulder to get his attention. He turns to face me and with a smile, I quietly talk to him so that my voice doesn't ring too loudly. "You can transform into different Dream Eaters, right?"

Sandman explained to me on our way here that he created Aurelius as a mimic Dream Eater and that previous consumption of other Dream Eaters, be them Spirits or Nightmares, allowed him the ability to transform into them. From what I'd seen before, he could turn into a Ryu Dragon and a Pegaslick, but neither would be good for collecting teeth quickly. I may not have an exact list of what he's capable of transforming into but asking wouldn't hurt.

Aury understands me and gives his version of a nod. "Can you become something that can fly quickly with good maneuverability?" He doesn't give me an answer. Instead it unlatches from around my neck and floats a few paces away before morphing into a new body. Medium sized wings spread out and a feathery head pops out as the rest of the body solidifies. His beak opens to squawk at me and he perches himself before me. An Eaglider. I brush my hand through his golden feathers and he snuggles against my touch. Aury turns around them and shows me his back before spreading his wings and squawking again. Mounting him like I've done before, he takes up to the sky and glides over to where Frost is.

"You were saying?"

He chuckles and shakes his head. "Nothing at all." Without a warning he dashes off, and with a pat to Aury's body, we do the same.

Despite being repetitive, the task we have is rather simple. Visit children, take the teeth, leave a coin. Nothing relatively hard. Aury does make it hard sometimes when he tries to eat the teeth or the coins I have and it makes me hide them away from the hungry munchkin by keeping them in separate bags around latched to my skirt's belt. We rendezvous with Tooth for a count on our progress and she's admittedly astounded by our quick work.

"Wow! You guys collect teeth and leave gifts as fast as my fairies." The comment makes their gloating stop briefly before they shrink back. Tooth and I seem to come to the same conclusion at seeing this. "You guys have been leavings gifts, right?"

They don't say a word and instead rush out to do as they were told. Tooth sighs and shakes her head all the while wearing a meek smile. "At least we're not behind."

"You would think they would've remembered such an important detail," I point out as I return the bag of teeth to my waist.

"I'm glad that you remembered at the very least, Ayano."

The compliment takes me by surprise simply because it sounds so genuine. "It's your signature thing, isn't it? I remember Os—my old man used to tell me that I'd have a quarter anytime I lost a tooth and that stuck to me. That quarter got me more than you can imagine back where I'm from."

"Ah yes," she hummed with a smile. As she dwelled in her memories, Aury and I took flight with her close behind as we continued our route together. "If I remember correctly, you're last tooth fell in the manor at Bog Easy."

The mere mention of that place sends shivers down my spine and it makes me recall exactly what she's talking about. "The ghosts there are pranksters. And I was an easily goaded kid back then." Yeah, vividly remember that. They got me to run around the whole of Lonesome Manor to find things they hadn't lost in an attempt to prank me. In the end, I won out but ran into a door and lost a my last baby tooth as a result.

A sudden realization comes to me as I recall that and my gaze turns towards Tooth. "You remember that about me?"

She nods just as we're arriving at another house. Aury stays behind as we enter, Tooth taking the lead as she exchanges the tooth with a coin, a thin smile on her face. "I remember all of the children I visit. Wasteland, along with other worlds, are ones that I have to travel to personally because of their location. My Baby Tooths can't handle much interworld travel."

"So you've been to Wasteland?" Such an amusing thought of someone so cheery and colorful as herself being in such bleak place get a grin out of me when she nods. "Found it dreary?"

"Not in the least," she replies with a chuckle and pockets the tooth. "Your home is a lively place."

 _Lively is a way to describe it._ There certainly is no boring day in Wasteland. Thinking about it makes me feel a bit melancholic but I brush it aside as we leave the room. The sudden ruffle of Tooth's feathers makes her hustle around, her head turning every which way as she points out places of teeth again.

"I'll get those," I tell her as Aury and I fly a bit ahead to make our point. "You head to the others and I'll meet up with you, alright?"

Tooth gives me a smile and nods before flying off. With a pat to his head, Aury heads off to the next house. The exchange is smooth, the kid only stirring a bit before knocking back to sleep, and I take a bit of a break by perching at the roof of the high building. Aury takes the time to stretch out from the hours we've been at work and preparing for the long night still ahead of us. This city is bright, filled with lights in every corner of every street, but I can't seem to enjoy the sight even if I wanted to.

A heaviness settled in my chest back in the Tooth Palace when Akio was taken. I hate that I recognize it as the same feeling I had when Haruka got taken away back in Hollow Bastion. It's pathetic that I can't protect either of them when they needed me the most.

" _You mustn't put yourself down, master."_ Rinto's quiet reminder is soft and gentle. _"You will rescue him just as you did Haruka. It's only a matter of time."_

"...time…"

The word has no weight in my mind but when spoken it takes a whole new meaning. Time meant a lot to Haruka and I now more than ever. I know that everybody ends up dying one day and most of them are incapable of stopping what's inevitably coming, but none of them have the chance to avoid a premature departure like Haruka has.

" _You have it too."_

"Haruka's takes precedence," I correct her.

" _Creating darkness is easier than finding an already existing one, master."_

"Don't push it, Rin," I grumble already irritated. "You aren't convincing me."

" _I am merely stating a fact."_ She sounds annoyed and I can almost imagine a frown on her pale face. _"But I also know how headstrong you are. Our best bet is finding Haruka's darkness quick to focus on creating yours."_

Before I can say anything to dissuade her again, the smallest motion at the corner of my eye makes me turn towards it. I find nothing beside me except Aurelius who tilts his head in confusion. But when I see it again as it rushes behind him this time, it's noticeable to both of us. They're Pitch's nightmares. And they're not just a few of them like last time.

The thought runs from my head along with a shriek as a stampede of them storm past us in a flurry of dark sand. Aury hurries to my side and hovers over me, using his wings to cover me from the onslaught. But they're not attacking us deliberately. Although it's the darkness they're made of that hurts me as they charge past, they're not charging at us and instead dash down toward the streets below. When I run as close to the edge as I can to glance below us, all I see is Frost and Sandman surrounded by those nightmares.

Sandman prepares for battle but the sound of jingling distracts us all. From a distance, North's sleigh shakily flies through the sky scraping against rooftops as it goes. This gives Sandman enough leeway to take Frost with him as he shoots out into much, much higher ground. They disappear beyond the darkened clouds and past my sight within seconds. Clicking my tongue, I run to Aury who stands by ready to take off. But just when I'm a few feet away from him, a loud pop and crack buzz off right on my eardrums and the quickest spark flies feet from me.

 _A bullet?_

Following the faint trajectory leads me to see a silhouette some feet away and above us. It gleams in the streetlight as it plays shadows on its slik body and on the rifle it's got pointed at me. Distinct canisters stick out from its shoulder and as it leans mid air on one knee, one of them pops off and another readies. It takes aim again and fires.

I have little time to react but I manage to dodge the shot by stepping back. In my panic though I fail to remember where I'm standing and that step sends me straight over the edge of the building. Fear lodges at my throat but is gone the instant I see Aury dive down and swipe me into my seat beneath him. There's no time to thank him though. Shot after shot echoes loudly through the streets, the sparks flying every which way and its noise reverberating in my ears.

When they stop for the briefest of moments, I dare look behind me and see whatever was shooting at us giving chase. It flew fast and left traces of dark crystal behind its wake that devoured everything they touched. Windows froze over in crystalline fractures, the panes of glass cracking from the force. Street lamps flickered before violently bursting and shattering as it flew past them. Streets were laced in a thin layer of the same crystal and cracked as Nightmares, Keeba Tigers and Eagliders alike, stormed behind it. All their eyes gleaming a vibrant red.

 _This can't possibly get worse._

The thunderous storm that gathered overhead makes me turn up. Within the darkness of the clouds and black sand, a speck of gold shines through. It's the lone light that is Sandman fighting vehemently against the darkness that threatened to swallow him whole.

"Aury, we have to get to th—" The screech and subsequent groan that escape me cut me off but the pain of the bullet that just grazed us shakes me enough to put my priorities in order. I can't fight alongside them with this maniac shooting at my back. He'll just shoot me down if I beeline to them.

" _Master, you must run."_ Rinto's suggestion doesn't fall on deaf ears but it isn't a sound option either.

"It's not going to let me!" I shout over the barrage bullets that keeps coming at our backs. "It's not going to let me reach them." As another fires past us, my mind works at a hundred times its usual speed fed by the adrenaline coursing through me. In this frenzy, though, it manages to think of something. "But the opposite is also true. We can't let it join the fight!"

If this thing and Pitch are working together, I can't let it leave. Sandman is having a hard time already as things stand. That thing coming to reinforce such a tumultuous fight would tip the scales in Pitch's favor. But only if I let it get there.

" _What are you planning?"_

I don't answer her.

My grip on Aury tightens as I lean further onto him, my head resting against the back of his as I tell him to keep dodging. Once given, I block out the rest of the ruckus going around me and focus on just one thing: the shots. I noticed this before but hadn't put much attention to it because of the adrenaline that urged me away. But as we ran away from them, my ears could hear the briefest of silences between shots. That and what I hear now, sets one number on my mind.

 _Four._

 _Crack._ The first shot hits a lamp behind us and it explodes on impact. _We're too high up._ Patting Aury down, he follows my lead and descends at a slow pace while still soaring rapidly through the city. I pat his right as we reach a streetlight and he swerves taking the sharp right just before another bullet blasts through.

 _Crack._ The second canister follows off like the first one. This shot hits the edge of the building just as we round the corner. When it hits, I can see what it does to its targets. A large portion freezes over in that dark crystal before it begins to rot away and falls off onto the streets in a pile of glistening soot. If that hits us, it'll corrode us to nothing but dust. _Not happening._ Urging him lower still, I keep my eyes on the manic shooter behind us as it follows suit and lowers itself to align his next shot.

 _Crack._ Aurelius barely manages to avoid this one with how low we are to the ground with no room to maneuver. "Hang in there, Aury." He flies a bit higher to avoid that close call from before but it's only a little bit of height difference from where I wanted him to be. And if it allows him to move as he wants and lets me act as soon as the opportunity shows itself, then I have no objections.

This low to the ground and with so little space separating us, I hear the Nightmare load the gun, the canister at the ready. Noticing this, I loosen my grip on Aury, on both my hands and feet, and reach out to grab and extend Ares. It lays comfortably against the length of my arm and I climb back onto Aury's back to squat low with only one hand grabbing his neck to steady myself.

 _There were only four canisters on its shoulder._

"The moment it fires, move up to avoid it, Aury," I whisper under my breath but it's loud enough for him to hear.

 _Each one pops off when he shoots._

 _Crack._ Aurelius doesn't miss a beat and ascends quicker than the bullet, effectively avoiding it. The moment he rises, my hand reluctantly lets go and I fall. But with the trajectory, angle, and speed I'm going at, I'm diving straight towards the Nightmare. It's lanky fingers pull back the trigger of its rifle but nothing happens. Noticing this, it rushes to replace the canisters on its shoulder.

A smug smirk comes to my lips as I turn myself and aim one end of Ares at it as I fall full speed towards it. "I won't let you reload!"

I let myself come as close as I can to it before unleashing Firaga. The spell hits point blank and the subsequent explosion sends us both flying in opposite directions. My body tumbles on the streets and I tuck myself in as I roll over and over against the concrete. A body stops my motion and wings cover me like a warm blanket to keep me in place. Looking up, Aury nudges it's head against the crown of mine in concern. He isn't the only one. Rinto's yelling in my head about how absurd the stunt I just pulled was. I delay my apologies and instead focus on what lies ahead. Firaga did little damage to the concrete buildings but it managed to do a number on the Nightmares that'd been after us. What matters most though and what makes me hold my breath is that Nightmare, the shooter.

It stands on the street now, far enough to not be able to attack us but close enough for me to see the damage I dealt. It's gait is shaky and with every step it takes pieces of dark crystal break off from its legs and skirt. The barrel of his rifle is broken beyond repair and lays useless at its feet. It shudders making more pieces fall before a dark portal opens behind it and it falls back. The other Nightmares follow suit and all at once, I'm left alone.

My whole body aches. That explosion of magic at point blank range injured me too but I let the endorphins rush over me and ignore it. I have to push it aside for now.

The clouds are still gathered over us. _Now's not the time._ Without warning, I climb onto Aury's back and he's quick to take off skyward bound towards the ensuing battle. But no matter how fast he is, there isn't any way that we'll get there in time. A part of me that I despise tells me that and I hate it all the more because even from where we are—ever approaching yet not close enough—I can see Pitch. I see him draw back his arm as if nocking back an arrow. And when he fires, the arrowhead strikes Sandman...and consumes him.

The sight shocks Aury to a halt and he starts convulsing out of the blue. "A-Aurelius!?" My cries are of pure concern and terror as I watch his golden form start to waver and shift. _He can't control his body._ As he struggles to keep ahold of his shape, a bright blast of blinding blue shines above me. Overhead, the darkness that unbeknownst to me began falling over us like an all devouring wave amidst the ocean was frozen over, crystallized and shattered into tiny fragments of black and blue that disintegrated into the air. But that darkness isn't the only thing that loses form when it shatters.

The moment I feel nothing below panic courses through my veins, cold and tangible. This time, though, it's not fear from falling that causes me to panic, it's Aurelius. He's back to his ball form and his wings are lifeless, not even beating. Instinctively, I grab ahold of him in my arms as we start falling and embrace him close to my body. My want to protect him is bigger than my fear at this point. But it's there all the same. My eyes shut tight as the cold wind rushes past me. I don't even have it in me to scream, rather my jaw tightens shut without my knowing.

One second we're free falling. The next my fall stops when huge arms catch my body midair. The feeling is so succinct and sudden that it takes me hearing their worried voices and North's above all to snap me out of my fright.

"We got you, child." North's fatherly voice and gentle hold on me makes me open my eyes. We're on his sleigh. The thought makes me want to cry from joy, but that drowns when I feel Aurelius' feathered wings against my arms. Pleading for him to put me down, he lets me stand on the sleigh as Bunny, Tooth, and Frost surround me. Undoing the hold in my arms to look at him turns my stomach. He's limp, his wings hanging off from my arms, and although he's still breathing, his breathes are haggard. The golden hue of his body paled without my noticing too.

Almost as if he's sick. _Almost as if he's—_

"W-What's happening to him?" I cry, unable to hold back my sobs.

"He's a Spirit, a good dream," Tooth calmly says but with a tinge of grief that I don't miss. Her lips purse into a taut line and her beautifully colored eyes are glazed as if she's holding back wanting to weep too.

Scanning the rest of them, there's a similar anguish painted over their expressions as well. My head finally puts two and two together and when I glance up, there's nothing and no one. Sandman's gone. Pitch overthrew him.

 _And when the sandman disappears, all good dreams will too._

* * *

 _What a mess._

Akio's mercurial glare doesn't leave the Night Terror for an instant. Despite the shape it came in during Pitch's battle against Sandman, he knew better than to let that abomination out of his sight. There was no doubt in his mind that even as disheveled and tattered as it may be, that thing would pose a good fight if threatened. The Night Terror sat back at a corner repairing itself, breaking open canisters of its own bullets and using the contents to reforge the dark crystals that made him up. It was an odd sight.

"Look at them." Pitch's lilting voice made Akio sick. The Boogeyman marveled before his globe as the lights began to flicker off faster than he'd ever seen them before. "Those lights, so tiny and so detestably bright, being blown off with a flick of my hand."

"Don't celebrate yet," Akio called from his place on the opposite side of the room. As far away from the Night Terror as possible. "Thinking them all as feeble is narrow minded. Much like darkness, the strength of light comes in varying capacities. Ridding the world of dreams may wipe off the vast majority but there may exist those whose light isn't so easily extinguished."

Pitch scoffed at his suggestion before a smug grin came to the Boogeyman. "Although I resent you, your mind is another story all together. I must admit that you aren't wrong, boy, but I have already planned ahead of time to make sure every little light is swallowed by the darkness." With a simple motion of his hand, he summons more of his nightmarish horses as well as Keeba Tigers and Eagliders. "Stay vigilant. Alert me as soon as they begin." The order given, the nightmares disappear into the dark. The Boogeyman's dark eyes turn to Akio then. "That Rescuer with you caused some trouble." A nod to the Night Terror that lingers still fixing the damages done to it is all it takes for Akio to understand what he's talking about. But even if he hadn't told him, he had an inkling that Ayano had something to do with destroying the Night Terror to such degree.

 _No doubt hurting herself in the process too._ Akio could guess as much from what little time they'd spent together. More often than not, she jumped into the fray way before having any actual plan in place. And whatever plans she did think of usually consisted of her ending up getting hurt one way or another. _It's like she's a walking disaster._

"She may not be powerful but she's stubborn. No doubt she'll cause you just as much trouble as the Guardians themselves."

"That's to be expected." Pitch let out a long sigh as he grabbed the bridge of his nose between his fingers. "Teobaldo mentioned nothing of a Rescuer though. Her kind are one of the most utterly aggravating beings to deal with."

The name kept being thrown around by Pitch and although he had a rather vague notion of who they were, Akio wanted to know what he knew. "You've encountered them before?"

"Regrettably." Pitch strode around his globe, the lights fading and ever dimmer. "Back in the good days of the Dark Ages, when I was powerful and feared, a man appeared alongside the Guardians chosen by the Man in the Moon. They took all of what was mine. My powers and strength, every last bit of it. And although they dealt the majority of the blow, the Rescuers stood behind that black hooded man to trample on any chance I had of resurging."

Black hooded man. There seemed to be a lot of those running about. But Akio couldn't discern by Pitch's vague description who that man was even supposed to be. Thankfully, the small amount of information he did have was broad enough to extrapolate from. "They're not those famous foretellers from legend?"

"No." Pitch shook his head as he stretched out his hand to touch the globe. "Daybreak Town was their dominion and they seldom left that which was left to them to protect. No, the Rescuers were another brigade, a class of warriors of their own specifically chosen by that man."

"What was their purpose?"

"I never cared to know. As far as tales go, though, it's told they fell apart from the inside, tearing at each other like the real beasts they were." Pitch snarled as if remembering those times and how much those people stole from them. "And that same sensation I got so long ago came back at the first glance I took of the girl. Those eyes of the serpent are unmistakable. She is one of them, if not by descendance then by coincidence. The reason matters not in the end. Though she poses no threat as she is now, she will once she discovers her lineage and the powers she's inherited to." With a sharp turn, Pitch glared down at Akio and took the few steps into his direction. "Be sure that your job consists of ridding us of that brat."

"Teobaldo's orders were to capture, not kill." Akio sinks down into his sit to hide his mouth and nose beneath the folds of his long coat. "Whatever he intends to do with her isn't any of my business, so go take it up with him."

It seemed that Pitch was about to burst at that blatant show of disrespect but the sound of crystal screeching against granite took his attention. The Night Terror was fully functional again down to its last piece. Their bout forgotten, Pitch strode back to the nightmarish thing and walked past it.

"We're about to have company. You would do well to disappear for sometime." Those were the words Pitch left him with before both disappeared into the darkness.

Resting for a few minutes, Akio assured himself that he was in fact alone once more before rising from his seat and walking over to the globe in front of him. The small lights flickered out one by one and they made something inside him twist and turn but he quelled it just as fast with a hand to his stomach.

" _Long ago, people lived in peace, bathed in the warmth of light. Everyone loved the light. Then people began to fight over it. They wanted to keep it for themselves. And darkness was born in their hearts. The darkness spread, swallowing the light and many people's hearts. It covered everything, and the world disappeared. But small fragments of light survived...in the hearts of children."_

Akio could hear the soft voice of his mother almost as if she were still there beside him, telling him the same story she did every time. And yet now as he saw those same lights begin to flicker and fade, the wrenching of his gut took ahold anew as he remembered her story.

"Those lights survived back then because they had who protected them, mother. It's different now."

The world wasn't his mother's fairytales. They weren't all about evil being vanquished by good. Darkness spread wide throughout many worlds in places where light couldn't reach them. There were no real heroes who protected the light then as there are none who protect it now.

Ayano's face came into his mind at thinking that, the piercing gaze that seemed to search his soul and hold him in place with that stark hazel gaze of hers. He could hear her snarky comments in the back of his mind and even see that smug, lopsided grin that she had plastered on her face most of the time. But the image left him when he shook his head free of it.

 _No, even if there are heroes who protect it now, they are few in number. They can't possibly reach to save all the worlds or all the people suffering in them._

His fingers twitched out of habit, the dark energy slithering down his hand as if wanting to encroach it and take control, but Akio gripped his hand tightly into a fist and squandered whatever dared crawl under his skin. It was volatile, dangerous, and ill-equipped to be used to save anybody. But if there was a way to do it, it'd be by destroying those who threatened to use that same power for evil.

Nobody had saved him. But with this, he didn't have a need to be saved anymore. Akio could fight for himself and for those he'd lost the one way he knew how to. By destroying that which stole them and his life away.

" _Promise me, Akio, that you'll never stop believing in that light that lives inside you. Nurture it, love it, and never let it die out."_

 _I'm sorry, mother, but that light died out the moment I lost you both._

That light didn't exist anymore. Neither did the sweet boy he once was. Those days were long gone and now this was all that was left. A young, cynical man with contract to keep to get his hands on the _man_ that took it all away.

Whatever kind of person Ayano turned out to be didn't matter. He couldn't let it matter. She was a bargaining chip, a means to his ends, and that was the way Akio meant to keep it.

* * *

The sight of them mourning Sandman is almost too much but I endure through it. Aurelius, weak and getting paler by the hour, is nestled in my arms still as I watch the Guardians grief over one of their own, lost to the darkness.

The ring of the bells is mournful too and it makes me all the more uncomfortable being here. Not wanting to disappear with my eyes though, I simply tug the hood of my jacket over my head, pulling it to cover what it can of my eyes.

With Sandman gone, the Dream Eater Spirits in this world—hell, it could even be affecting the dreams in other worlds too for all we know—are disappearing. There isn't any telling how fast or to what extend they will but by what Tooth told me and by Aury's state, it's affecting those in this one for sure. The farewells are over faster than I thought and the crowd present begins to disperse when North gives his orders for them to continue working. Even if Sandy isn't with them anymore, they had to continue forth, he said. For the children's sake.

Sniffling, the oaf of a man wipes at his nose with the whole of his forearm before looking around the room. "Where is Jack?"

I give a slight nod away towards the hallways. "Saw him walk away when we got here."

He thanks me under his breath and goes off to find Frost. Tooth and Bunny stay behind with me and watch me as I walk over to the fireplace and carefully climb the shadows there to take a seat on the high mantel. Underneath me, the shadows quake and I'm wary of how little I have left to use them. But that's the least of my concerns at the moment. Gently, I place Aury on my lap careful not to twist his wings and lay him as comfortably as I can.

A humming approaches me and an array of colors comes to my peripheral. I don't pay them any attention, focusing on stroking Aury instead. But a sudden hand falling on mine and stopping it makes me lift my gaze to meet Tooth's gentle amethyst eyes.

"Are you okay?" I intend to lie but at a time like this, I can't find it in me to even try. A shake of my head is enough for her. Her lips turn to a taut line before her hand comes to stroke one of Aury's wings.

The words that repeat in my mind get stuck in my throat but seeing Aurelius so weak makes them surface. "He's going to die too, isn't he?"

The line turns to a grimace. "Wr can't be sure. Perhaps this is only temporary."

"But without Sandman—" her hand flinches but I don't dare stop unless that same fear strangles my words mute, "—Aurelius won't last. He's a Dream Eater, a Spirit, and Spirits are good dreams. Without Sandman, he'll disappear soon, won't he?"

"That bugger of yours will return to the pieces it's made of." Angered by Bunny's name for Aury, my eyes rim red and burn a slight bit. He comes towards us undeterred by me though and smoothly pats his head. "Dream Eaters can be remade from their ingredients. Sandy told me once that it's the easiest way of creating them. So even if it goes away, you can still—"

"But he won't be the same." This time they do take a few steps back from me. It's not difficult to see why. My eyes are on fire, my powers overtaken by my emotions and activating on their own. Taking a deep breath to calm myself down, I tug my hood lower to hide them. There isn't a point in reining them in when I have no control over them at the moment.

They don't get it. Even if I knew how to remake Aurelius, it wouldn't be him. It'd be like...me and the other Ayano. We are the same person and yet we aren't. This heart isn't mine, yet it is. I don't want Aury to be like that. I just want Aurelius to be Aurelius.

"I just want my Aury back."

My gaze wanders over him for a second before a sudden dimming of lights gets our attention. Our sights stray towards the globe as almost simultaneously, countless of lights begin to face. Tooth and Bunny call for North, alarmed at the sight, and he returns with Frost close on his heels. Their panic is infectious and has me off of the mantel and on my feet in a hurry, striding to the edge of the balcony where I can see the globe better.

"Look how fast they're going out," Tooth says, that same dread tinging her words.

"It's fear." Frost says and glides across the world examining it. "He's tipped the balance."

I'm at a loss too. I've never battled a widespread darkness like this. Not on my own. That's always been Sora's job. I've always been on the supporting end where I work best. But this—if not even those who're supposed to protect them can stop it...

"Hey, bucker up, you sad sacks." Bunny hops from the back all the way to the front, climbing onto the railings. There he lets it loose and tells us his plan: Easter is coming and keeping that alive could very well keep those lights lit too.

Although they all agree, saying it's a far-fetched idea would be an understatement. But I can't find it in myself to say that to them. If there's one thing being friends with Sora has taught me, it's that I should stop being such a defeatist. Their plan made up, I'm all ready to go with them when North comes to stop me.

"Child, you don't have to come."

"What?"

He gives me a smile and strokes Aurelius's head. "Your friend needs you."

"He's coming with me."

"It is dangerous."

"I've already proven myself capable of fighting." My hold tightens around Aury's body at the mere thought of staying behind. "Even without him, I'll still fight. Don't you dare try to stop me, North. Pitch made this my fight as much as yours when he took Aiko and hurt Aury. This is about more than just the children now."

 _It's about my friends._

North takes a deep breath and sighs through his nose but the expression he wears if far from reprimanding or troubled. It's almost like he knew I'd say that. North takes something from behind him as he stands his full length and procures out a bag. He asks for my permission which I give out of curiosity and he puts it around my waist before tying it off, letting the bag hang to one side of my hip.

"What is this for?"

"For easy carry." He shows me two of his fingers and once he sees he has my attentions presses them against his lips in a small kiss before he taps on the small mistletoe pin on the flap. The tiny bag grows to a much larger size—maybe the span of both my open palms—before he gently takes Aury from my hands. Although reluctant, I pass him over and North places him inside the bag. The inside of it is lined with white fur, soft to the touch from what I feel as I hold the flap open for him. Aurelius sits there and only moves a tiny bit before North and I fit his wings and tail in without trouble. By the looks of it, he's even got extra space too. "That way you will rest assured he's okay," he says as he closes to flap over him and clips it shut. He gives it a tug to emphasize his words.

"He'll really be okay in there?"

"Fine as Christmas morning."

The nonsensical words make me chuckle and I turn to him with a small smile. "Thanks."

He ruffles my head with his large hand and reciprocates the gesture. "Let us go. We have Easter to prepare!" He gathers the Guardians and Frost and guides them even deeper underground where not even we ventured in when we first came here. I follow suit, keeping a firm hand on the bag.

As we lower the elevator, North gives his loud agreement to the group about Bunny being right. "As much as it pains me to say, old friend, this time Easter is more important than Christmas." Bunny appears amazed by that and although it gets a grin out of me, I don't lose my stride to North as he exits the elevator. My first thought when he mentions heading to the Warren is his sleigh but Bunny catches us off guard saying that since it's his Warren, they'd be working under his rules.

"Buckle up" is all I hear him say before the ground disappears from underneath us. Quicker than I thought, I somehow manage to undo the clasp holding my bag to my side and hold it in my arms instead as we slide through a maze of tunnels. Though the ride is anything but smooth with all the tumbling and sliding, I protect Aury well enough until we all finally pop out of an exit where I'm the last of the bunch with everyone jumping out ahead of me. Thankfully and to my surprise, I bounce off of something squishy and soft that 'umphs' and it dulls my fall before I land on my butt sitting up.

"Ha, ha, 'buckle up.' Is very funny."

Frost comes over to me and offers his hand as he leans over on his staff. He says nothing but I accept his help anyway and hold Aury tightly in one arm before standing up. Thanking him, he nods and I busy myself retying the satchel when Bunny welcomes us to the Warren. The first thing I notice are the giant stone eggs that spin the top half of their faces.

 _How strange._

" _Each seem to have those who aid them in their endeavors, be them yearly or daily."_

Seems so. Though now that I remember, Sandman didn't seem to have any. He truly was a little man of great power. The grim reminder of how such a powerful being fell sours my mood greatly. So caught up am I, though, that I'm shocked by their sudden and rather violent reaction as they charge forward to the only other entrance of the room. I'm about to charge unawares as well but when I see what emerges from the dark hole, I stop myself and see the rest do the same.

Frost seems to know the little girl that runs around chasing after the elf that traveled with us and leaving the tiny eggs— _do they have feet?—_ that she'd been holding. Sophie scampers about like any child her age and Bunny starts freaking out about it to my own mild amusement. Frost gets off the hook easily for, as I'm told, he's pretty much invisible to every child.

When he repeats that, I can't help but wonder to myself about that. _How can I see him then? Other than from a passing refrain during the holidays, I've never heard of him until now._

" _Your eyes are special, master. As I've told you before, you and those who possess us are capable of seeing what others aren't capable of seeing. Even if you don't believe in him, as per the demands and rules of this world, your Deceiving Eyes see him still. A being still exists even when it cannot be seen."_

There isn't much arguing with that. So instead, I watch from the sidelines as Tooth tries and fails miserably to appease the kid. Frost laughs it off as he chases after Sophie who goes after the running little eggs.

"When was the last time you guys actually hung out with kids?"

North seems to have the answer to that. "We are very busy bringing joy to children. We don't have time—"

When the word sticks to him, a grin comes to me and I provide the answer as both of us watch Sophie chase after butterflies. "For children?" That he purses his lips shut lets me know that I hit the nail right on the head.

Frost lets out another laugh as he plays with a snowflake at the tips of his fingers. "If one little kid can ruin Easter then we're in worse shape than I thought." It comes to land on Bunny's nose and on that blink of an eye he changes tunes. Instead of dismissing Sophie, he eagerly invites her to follow inside and help decorate the eggs.

We trail behind them and the space that opens up before my very eyes astounds me. It's such a spacious prairie that spans as far as I can see and trailing the paths of grass are thousands upon thousands of tiny eggs sauntering off in their tiny legs. My own legs wander off by themselves and take me off to the first thing that catches my attention, a shiny flower bud. Bending over it, the petals open up, a burst of gold dust coming from the tips of its petals as a newborn egg jumps out and hurries along with the rest— _what even is this?_

Though strange, I can't keep the smile that comes to my lips at seeing such curious thing happening before my very own eyes. Following after them, I take careful steps so that I don't squash any beneath me. Frost mentions time as he hangs somewhere above me on his staff and I wonder the same thing.

"Is it really possible to get all these eggs painted _and_ hidden before morning?" I ask aloud to nobody in particular.

"We will if you believe we can!" Bunny's loud voice comes and goes as he rushes past me bouncing off of rocks with Sophie at his back.

 _Well, I suppose he'd know best since he does this every year._ Soon enough, I'm walking alongside a long winding path edged by large bluebells. Some bounce up and down and the few that don't I tip down with a slight push of my hand. Once they get bouncing, they start puffing out small clouds of paint that coat the eggs entirely. It's simple and yet so intricate at the same time. Feeling a bit more into it at seeing the creation of such beauty, I keep up with the others in a safe trot, jumping from rock to rock as I go.

"Hanging on alright there?"

Frost flies at my speed beside me making me lift my gaze to him. That lasts an instant before I go back to watching my step as I follow behind everybody. "Managing."

"Here, let me help." He extends his hand forward and although I'm a bit reluctant, he's offered and delivered enough times to have a slight bit of my trust. My hand stretches out to him but instead of grabbing it, he grasps my forearm making me do the same before he lifts me by it. The trip is short and we manage to go ahead of the rest of the Guardians. But as he puts me down near a colorful pond where the eggs jump in emerging all the more beautiful, he hangs around me still, accompanying me along. "Say, they've all been calling you Rescuer and whatnot but I don't think I ever got your name."

"It's Ayano," I say. This time I'm able to keep more eye contact now that I'm on more solid ground. "But my friends call me Aya."

"Well, Aya, nice to formally meet you. I'm—"

"Jack Frost."

"Ah, so you know me." He says that half jokingly but that he grins makes me shake my head at his cockiness.

"Don't flatter yourself. They mention your name too much not to catch up on it."

"But you must believe, otherwise you wouldn't be able to see me."

My mouths opens briefly but I shut it tight before I can give him the crude explanation that Rinto gave me. He seems pretty hung up on the fact that nobody believes in him. I have no intention to put another nail on that coffin of his. Instead, I go with more of a half truth instead. "Perhaps. But aside from that though, I've got special eyes that see more than normal people do. It's merely reinforcing what I already see, it seems."

"Strange. Never met anybody like you or that friend of yours. Where did you say you're from again?"

The flimsy branch of a tree taps my forehead and takes me a bit by surprise, but as I glance up, I notice that the eggs are climbing several low hanging trees like that one and sliding down its spiraled branches. They fall into them and fall to the ground, emerging with designs around their bodies. A particular egg gets caught in place and I trot up to it to gently release it from the branch. It bounces a bit before getting back on its little feet and sprinting off.

"I didn't." That's all the correction I give him as we find ourselves somewhat ahead of everybody else.

Frost guides me to the exit he sees and through it a grand vista presents itself. A structure of hundreds, maybe even thousands of tunnel entrances stand on the far end of the prairie. A trodden path leads to the center before it breaks and leads to the rest. The sight is simply splendid. The eggs haven't arrived yet so I head to one of the many statues around and sit on them, turning the bag on my hip to face forward.

Seeing this gorgeous landscape takes my breath away as I sigh deeply through my nose and smile. A thought of Haruka comes to mind and I can just image his giddy expression if he were ever to see what I'm seeing.

"What's the matter?" A sidelong glance is all Frost gets from me. He's sitting beside me on another statue and from there he simply stares at me as if that would give him the answers I refuse to give him. But this one I'm more than willing to share.

"Just thinking about my little brother. I left him back home but seeing this reminded me of him."

"How come?"

"He's a very creative boy. He took up drawing again sometime ago even when he never particularly liked what he drew."

Though the reason why he never did is clear now, I could tell that drawing was very much an outlet for him even after he managed to control his powers a little more. He likes doing it and I have to admit that he isn't half bad at it either. And I know he'll only get better with time.

"He loves drawing and his favorite are definitely picturesque sceneries." He loves helping make maps of the worlds we've been to and even of Wasteland and Hollow Bastion. The times I've taken him to visit and do some work, he's done nothing but nag me to tour him around after we finish, pencil and notebook at the ready. "And this…" My arm spreads out before me to gesture at the grand space before us and I let out a wistful sigh. "Haruka would love this."

 _Knowing him, he'd stay here for hours on end to get every last detail._

"Well, once this is all over, you can bring him with you next time you come visit."

His phrasing and choice of words makes me turn to him with a raised eyebrow. "What makes you think I will?"

Frost scoffs and shrugs one shoulder before finally looking away. "Well, let's just say…" He stares at his feet before chuckling. He puffs up his chest and in his deepest voice and heaviest accent says, " _I feel it in my belly_."

It's useless to try and hide my laughter behind my hand. It bursts out of me and he joins in glad that I got his joke. As I wipe tears from my eyes and amidst bouts of giggles, I ask, "W-Was that supposed to be North?"

"How'd I do?"

Another giggle escapes me before I say, "Work on the accent, buddy. It's thicker than that— _it's got to come from belly!"_ At my lame impersonation we both burst out laughing.

" _I've never heard you laugh like that before, master."_ Rinto's bewilderment does little to quell my delight.

 _I can't really describe it, Rin. It's just something about Jack, I guess, that just makes me want to smile. It's strange but not unwelcome, frankly._

She takes that for what it means and so do I. It's really something about this particular boy that I can' shake off. It urges me to let go and simply be happy and have fun in the little bright spots of sunshine we get during these heavy times of storms. It makes me feel like even with things as bad as they are we can't afford to lose ourselves to all this negativity. That we must remain positive and tread through these hardships and this fear with a smile.

 _I think Sora and Jack would get along all too well._

Rinto chuckles at hearing this. _"Agreed."_

"Thanks for the laugh, Jack," I say sincerely, "I sorely needed that."

He smiles and bows his head. "Anytime, Aya."

Spotting a hopping bunny, I stand and nod towards Bunny as he and Sophie step out into the prairie we're in. "Guess they're here."

"Guess so." Jack gives them a glance before turning back to look at me. "Will you be okay?"

" _Fine as Christmas morning,"_ I say with the thick accent but my normal voice. He scoffs but nods all the same and stands on the statue before flying off to go to Bunny and Sophie. It doesn't take long before I follow after them once they all come to the same spot.

There's a bit of disagreement when I get to them about who should take Sophie home. If Aury were alright, I'd offer myself but as things stand only Tooth or Jack could take her. North is opposed to that and I can see why, what with him having proved powerful enough to fight against Pitch. But he assures us he'll be fast.

"Then hop on," I tell him getting their attention. With that on me, I take Ares in hand and twirl it between my fingers. "Hey, you've got me too. I can't dispel Pitch, but I'll be sure to do all I can until Jack gets back."

The Guardians blink at me and Jack only smiles at my encouragement. In the end, they agree with him being the one to take Sophie back home. Bunny opens him a tunnel out of the Warren and Jack takes it well on his feet and disappears below it before it closes.

"Well, in that case, let's get started then." Bunny's enthusiasm is blatant and rather infectious. It gets us all hyped about the coming hours we have to hide the eggs before Easter starts. Following the trodden path towards the tunnels, Bunny partitions them all around. Tooth, North and I get a section while he'd get another. "All ya buckers have to do is protect the eggs until they get to the surface. They'll hide themselves once there."

"Efficient." Extending Ares to its full length, I hold it with both my hands over my lap. "Shouldn't be too hard."

"Remember, be careful, child," North calls from his end of tunnels.

I wave at him dismissively. "No worries! I've got my end."

"Let us go then." Tooth is the first to fly off into her tunnels with North following quickly after.

Bunny waves at me and drops to all fours. "See you on the other side" is all he says before he dashes out to his end.

Being the last to leave, I let my batch of eggs run ahead before I walk behind them and pass through the tunnel. It darkens before the prairie disappears behind me and I'm met with a tunnel. It's somewhat dark but the eggs seem to know where to go so I follow in stride behind them while holding Ares over my shoulders and hanging my arms over it.

" _Stay alert, master. We cannot be certain of Pitch's plan of attack."_

"I know." But thinking about it will only drive me down a spiral of negativity I don't want to go into. "We'll cross that bridge when it comes." I didn't have it in me to say 'if it comes,' though. Somehow, my gut told me not to be let my guard down.

As we take the length of the tunnel though, the patter coming from the tiny feet of the eggs suddenly isn't the only sound I'm hearing and out of the blue they're suddenly holding up the line, each getting stuck between each other. I take Ares properly in my hands at seeing this and strain my ears enough to catch the deep methodic breathing of something in the distance in front of us. Not willing to risk walking into the darkness, I shoot out a small fireball through the tunnel and as far away from the eggs as I can. My eyes widen as the fire's light glows through and exposes the many Keeba Tigers prowling toward us from the dark. The eggs cower and retrace their steps back to me to clamor at my feet.

 _They're scared._

My grip on Ares tightens and I take my stance against whatever these Nightmares bring. But as my fireball dies down and darkness takes over again, the gleam of their red eyes lingers and stares right at us.

Then, with no warning given, they pounce.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _Took me a little bit longer but it's out! May was a damn hectic month for me and I'm sure had it not been for it, this chapter would have come out sooner. But that's another story I don't think any of you are particularly interested in._

 _On other news, thank you all for your never ending patience and support! I love hearing what you think as well which is why I thank_ _ **Antex**_ _and_ _ **oz-cocoa**_ _for reviewing! Hearing you guys tell me what you feel and think fills me with so much happiness. You and everybody else who reads, favs, and follows are a major reason of why I keep writing!_

 _This is a side note (self-promotion, really. So feel free to skip if ya'll aren't interested). I recently made a Ko-fi (ko-fi com/ xeveningx). If anyone's unfamiliar with it, it's basically another little place to show support. I made it more out of curiosity and to see how'd it turn out for me. I'll try to update there as much as I do on twitter (which is my preferred one). I'm hoping to upload art I commissioned for my works too. One of them being of Ayano, Haruka, and Akio! That one's done already and you can find it here along with a sketch of Ayano in a future outfit I'm working on ( xeveningx. Tumblr post / 174321107799 /ah - my- babies- %E F% BE %9 F- these -are -the -lovely) Just take out the spaces and you'll be grand._ _The lovely art comes from hvalrossart from tumblr so check her out too!_

 _That aside, though, I really have to thank all of you who simply come every time I update and read these stories of mine. Things have been pretty hectic and they brought me down quite a bit but with those dark clouds having passed and much brighter things ahead, I can focus on my passion of writing and in sharing the stories of these adorable characters with you all! Really, this is a humble thank you, kisses, and hugs to all of you!_

 _Now with that out of the way, I hope that you enjoyed this chapter and that you stay tuned for the next update! :D_


	9. Memoir IX: What is a Rescuer?

**Memoir IX:**

 _What is a Rescuer?_

* * *

The sight of so much beautiful and magical hope destroyed and broken tears at my heart. There was no way to save them, none of them. I tried my damndest but that wasn't enough. The Nightmares destroyed all the eggs in my tunnels and even those of the other Guardians. Absolutely nothing made it to the surface. And as we watch Bunny desperately trying to catch the kids' attention to realize he's invisible to them only struck us all the harder.

 _Hope is gone._

" _Master, look."_

Listening to Rinto's soft voice, I lift my head to find Jack here. I'm about to ask where he'd been this whole time but North beats me to the punch and tells him what happened in his absence. It isn't until Tooth points out Baby Tooth's absence and the golden cylinder of teeth in his hands—of Jack's memories—that things start aligning in place for everybody. But as they argue and shout, my mind riles at just how absurdly _perfect_ this all fell into place.

Jack was being blamed for what happened, for abandoning them and turning to Pitch for his memories instead of helping them.

 _I know a goddamn scheme when I see one._

But before I can put my two very valuable cents in, the Guardians have their backs turned to Jack and leave him no other choice but to run. My hand reaches out to him as he flies off but nothing I do or say will convince him to stay. A few steps take me to where he once stood and there on the floor, I see a tiny wooden baby. Red with big blue eyes. Picking it up and holding it my hands, I turn it around before looking at the defeated Guardians.

"This has ruse spelled all over." All eyes turn to me when I'm unable to keep to myself any longer. When I have their attention, I turn while still holding the wooden baby in the palm of my hand. "I may be an outsider where all these things are concerned but if I know how to do something it's to spot lies and tricks when I see them. This went perfectly according to Pitch's plan. Too perfectly."

"Because _he_ turned his back on us!" Bunny shouted, anger clear in his voice as he took the few hops to come face to face with me.

Undeterred, I stand my ground and glare up at him. "Yes, but tearing yourselves apart won't help anybody but Pitch." The baby turns in my fingers again and I go past Bunny to North. "He's torn between wanting too many things. It's a place I've been in before. And I'll be honest, you can't blame a boy who has never had anything or anybody to simply ignore the aching need to fill an emptiness that's been there from the beginning." I raise my hand towards North to gets his attention before tossing the wooden baby to him. He catches it easily but his expression grows sullen at seeing it. "I know this is important and I don't want to see you guys vanish. But I won't just push the blame on him either."

This time it's me who turns my back on them and start running in the general direction Jack left. I know I won't catch up to him but I also know that I can't just let him be. It's when I reach the outskirts of a city that I take a moment to look around and catch my breath. Jack's nowhere in sight though.

 _I can't catch up to him like this._

A rummaging at my side makes me turn down to see Aurelius peeking out from my bag. I hassle with him trying to put him back inside, but he manages to slip through my hands and falls to the floor. Even when I kneel to pick him up though, I falter at seeing his body slowly morphing into a giant mass of gold. It takes him a minute but he manages to turn into a Ryu Dragon somehow. The shape of his body shakes though almost like he's barely able to hold onto the shape he took.

"Aury, stop. You're pushing yourself too—" The loud growl that he gives makes me yelp and step back. He looks at me over his shoulder and growls again before forcefully jerking his head against his back. "You...you want me to get on?" My brow furrows at his idiotic request but before I can even say anything, he growls again before turning to nab my hood and hair and throwing me haphazardly over his shoulder. I somehow manage to land on his back sitting like I would to mount him but as soon as I do, he takes off into the sky.

We're flying so fast that my screams are drowned out. He can't hear me telling him to stop. But he won't listen even when I can feel his body beneath quivering and at times shining, threatening to lose its form. Every time that happens, he shakes himself as if trying to concentrate on keeping it. Aurelius flies far and fast despite his condition and soon enough I can see a speck of blue soaring ahead of us.

I don't know how long we fly but we leave the city behind us and after hours of following behind Jack, we're assaulted by gelid airs and snow. It washes over us out of the blue and in the light blizzard, the snow makes it much harder for either of us to see Jack. We lose him but that isn't at the forefront of my thoughts for long when Aury loses the grip on his form. The moment he turns back to his small form, I take him and wrap my arms around him as I try to climb what little shadows I can find. I manage to take two steps down getting us somewhat closer to the snowy mountains below before I too lose my footing. We plunge the few feet left into the snow and although the fall hurt, I don't feel anything broken.

My teeth chatter as I sit up and wipe off the snow on me. The chill that runs down my back makes me hold Aury closer to me to share what little warmth I have with him. We lost Jack and in this blizzard I don't think we can search for him.

" _Worry about finding shelter. You won't live long in this cold."_

"What shelter!?" I shout over the noise. There's nothing but mountains and snow surrounding us. I don't know what she expects me to find. But even if I know that, I also know that I can't stay here and let ourselves be buried alive. Standing up, I open the pouch North gave me to put Aurelius back inside. He struggles against me but after that flight, he has little to fight back with. "P-Please stay there," I whisper through chattering teeth, "It'll be warmer for you."

Thankfully, just then the blizzard dies down a bit letting the snowfall be gentler on us. With that I'm able to see our surroundings better just in time to see black sand rise in the air before it's frozen in place not far from where we are. The tall spiked display stands like a beacon and gets my legs moving through the inches of snow. But I only get to run a few minutes before a _pop_ and _crack_ echo through the air and a mound of snow explodes into the air a few feet beside me. As if a bomb went off underneath it.

 _Or a bullet shot at it._

Dreading the latter, I look over my shoulder to find exactly what I didn't want to behind me treading through the snow with ease. That Nightmare from before stalks me methodically, a short gun in one hand and the other swinging at his side. My whole body turns to give it my undivided attention. It lifts its arm, aims, and fires. The trail of the bullet is predictable and I'm able to avoid it but it quickly fires in succession after that first one. I can barely avoid the second but the third nicks my leg. These aren't those bullets that froze things over like the other ones though and it just opens a gash on my thigh. I can thank the snow for once on this since the cold numbs me enough to not feel the pain. He draws his gun back to reload and that moment gives me enough time to think.

I can't run to where Jack is. Doing that will only give that thing a free target on my back. But fighting it...

 _Rin, you think it's doable?_

" _Possibly."_ The doubt in her voice is almost tangible and it makes me scowl. _"You've dealt with long-range enemies before. Perhaps you can deal with it like that."_

"I'm gonna need some help then." _As it stands I'll be fighting it alone. Been a while since I last fought like that against something this strong._

" _Of course, master. Never forget that you have me by your side always."_

The burning in my eyes echo the meaning of her words and makes me grin as I take out Ares and extend it. The one end of it that strikes with magic has a small flame ignited, not only to keep me warm but also to have the canon ready to shoot out fire magic at a moment's notice. The Nightmare reloads and in the seconds it takes it to lift the gun, I'm already shortening the distance between us. I've fought a gun-user enough times to know that the closer I get to them, the more difficult it is for them to aim at me. That remains true as I'm able to get up close to it and start pummeling it down with the mallet on the other end of Ares. My movements are slower than usual but even with the snow and cold impeding me, I still have more of an advantage up close than it does. With every hit of my mallet, I see its armor chip away with large chunks of crystal falling from it. _Good._ Just as I swing back for another hit, I find myself staring down a different gun's barrel. The click I hear from the safety snaps me out of my shock and I sidestep the shot to tumble out of the way. We stand feet from one another and it's then that I see the other gun it's pulled out.

 _Two?_

The number comes to be the least of my problems when I see that he snaps both of the barrels open. The black bullets it must've been shooting me with fall from their cases as it turns the guns over but as it turns them upright again, bright lights of different colors shine inside the barrels before he clicks them back into place. Loaded, it takes a stance before dashing forward.

" _It's changing its style."_

"Then so will we!" The command isn't necessary. My eyes burn intensely to the point that the corners of my vision turn a vivid red. It's blatant but not distracting.

The Nightmare falters surely shocked at seeing me disappear before its very eyes, but when I move it easily pinpoints my location and turns a gun my way without moving its body. It fires but instead of a bullet, a bright light flashes and from its gun a bolt of lightning shoots out. It takes me by surprise and I know I won't dodge it in time. But I don't have to. The same curved shield from Haruka's ribbon blocks the lightning, giving me time to make heads or tails of what just happened.

 _Magic bullets._

And it's faster when attacking with them too. It doesn't give me any time to think of anything to do against it. It fires off bullet after bullet, lightening after ice chunk after fire blast. I'm able to avoid most and those I don't are deflected by the magic on Haruka's ribbon. I try to close the gap between us but that it's using magic makes it all the harder now. Normal bullets, I can deal with, but these…

 _But I've dealt with then before._

That thought alone stops me in my tracks as it reloads, flicking the barrels open. _I have...I've fought this before._

Now that I'm paying more attention to it, I can tell that even the smallest of details is an exact copy. It pivots a leg forward and shoots a fire blast with the opposite gun that I read all too well now. _Like he does._

When it raises both guns, I know that his aim will be closer to my feet than my body and that gives me enough leeway to jump forward and avoid the shot while getting closer. _Like he does._

Using what little bit of shadows I can, I'm able to somersault over and land behind it. It's turn is slow and when it aims, it's aiming at shoulder height expecting me to be standing. In that moment, I can't comprehend all the emotions that are rushing through me at my realization. Adrenaline is at the forefront but I also feel joy and relief.

" **Always expect the unexpected. If they get behind you, they'll most likely try to put you down. So don't aim straight behind you, aim lower and don't hesitate."**

" **That's too much, obasan."**

" **Not even. You need to learn these things properly if you want to fight with me, Haruka. I won't let you otherwise."**

"...you're…"

The pop right above me makes my ears ring loudly but even through that deafening crack, I swipe my legs underneath its own making it topple back. As it tries to flip back to its feet, my mind rushes through my memories to find what I can do to immobilize it.

 _Haruka's scared of—_

The moment the image comes to my mind the burning on my eyes intensifies as I look at the Nightmare that stands back up in front of me. It stays still as the illusion takes shape in my place. Though I can't see its face, I know it's staring at it, awestruck from the fear. Taking my chance, I charge at it and point the flaming end of Ares directly at him. Firaga fires off in a blaze and hits it point blank.

The blast sends us away from each other like last time, but this time I'm prepared and land on my feet right to stop myself from rolling away. Ablaze, the Nightmare staggers back as its whole body burns and melts, the heavy crystal sliding off of its body like molten metal and hissing as it hits the cold snow. As it melts away, I catch something shining inside its empty chest cavity. A small orb made of cracked crystal shines a soft sky blue color. Like his eyes.

 _Is that—!?_

There isn't time for me to question or hesitate. My feet rush forward with my hand reaching out to it as the Nightmare falls apart away. Just as I'm about to have it within my grasp, a dark portal opens behind it and what looks like a large cyan hand cracked in black comes out. Its palm opens towards me and with that single motion, it sends a gust of wind pressure that blows me away. The bits of molten crystal follow with me as I tumble back onto the snow. Somehow I manage to stop myself by digging my hands into the snow and look up while ignoring the burning of my skin. The cyan hand takes the Nightmare in its large grasp and takes it through the dark portal before it disappears.

Once gone, only the roar of the blizzard makes a sound.

"It's gone..." I can't help the scream of frustration that takes over me as I slam my fists against the snow. _**"Damn it!"**_

" _Master, please, calm down."_

"It was right there! I almost had it in my grasp! That thing was—I'm sure that it was Haruka's! It had to be Haruka's—!"

 _That thing was Haruka's darkside._

My fists and Ares slam against the snow more and one of those times a _clanking_ resonates through as I hit something. Lifting my gaze, I see a blob of crystal that I cracked from hitting it with Ares not far away. All around me there are similar spots of crystal—the blobs that melted off of it, they must've solidified already. The only pieces left of what I could've finally retrieved. My teeth bite down on my lower lip as I get up. Out of my frustration, I stomp down on the crystal I hit with Ares and hear it shatter under the hit but as I lift my foot, I notice something of a different color and much smaller gleaming in the faint light.

Picking it up, I turn it between my fingers to inspect it closer. It's an earring. A weirdly shaped one too. It reminds me of Aury's tail and of—I gasp.

 _It looks like Akio's necklace._ But unlike his crystal necklace, this one is silver with small gemstones that display a much clearer picture of what it's supposed to be. It resembles an eight pointed star, except that the points that went northeast and west are wings and north is heart-shaped. It's strange; I've never seen anything like it before aside from Aury's tail and Akio's necklace. That only brought more questions to my mind though, and frankly, with how freaking upset I am right about now, I don't want to think about any of it.

Thankfully, it's Rin's soothing voice that drags my mind back to earth. _"Master, we should find Jack Frost."_

"...I know," I say while sighing through my nose and letting some of the frustration leave me. "We still got Akio to rescue too." I let my anger fuel me and I dash out towards the ice sculpture that I see from afar. It takes a few minutes but I get there eventually and when I do, the first thing that I hear is Jack's voice echoing from somewhere.

"I saved her!"

My head swivels around to a crevice on the ice. Running over to it and skidding to a stop at the edge, I kneel down to have a closer look and see Jack below.

"Jack!" He doesn't turn my way despite my calling him but after a bright blue light comes from the staff in his hands, he glances up towards me before grinning. In the blink of an eye, he shoots out of the fissure and into the sky. My eyes follow but lose him in the whiteness surrounding us. It doesn't take long before he comes back to grab me by my waist and haul me up along with him. Panic hits me and I hold on tightly to him as he rises higher and higher into the sky.

His laughter rings in my ears. I've never heard him laugh so earnestly. But as he chuckles and turns down to me, I frown. "You could've warned me, Frost!"

"What's the fun in that?" Blue eyes stare down at me before his grin turns softer. "Thanks for coming after me, Aya."

"Sure thing." My eyes wander out to try and make heads or tails of where we're going. When I can't fathom the slightest idea, I turn back to him. "Are we going back to the others?"

He nods. "But before that Baby Tooth's got something for us." He dips a bit before rushing onward ever faster than before as the wind takes him. I can't bare the cold gusts hitting my face so I hide it against his shoulder and pull my hood over my head while keeping it in place with my hand.

"It better be good then!"

It turns out that Baby Tooth took us to Pitch's lair somewhere deep underground. I doubt there's an exact location but it doesn't matter now. Jack lets me down near some broken stairs that lead up to a globe before going off to the hanging cages. Chirping rings about like tolling bells but Jack can't get the fairies to fly out.

"They can't fly?"

" _They have no power to do so."_

That reminder gets me to turn to the globe whose lights are slowly blinking away.

"Ayano?"

Despite how soft and quiet the breath of my name is, I recognize his voice almost instantly. Staring beyond that empty world of metal and flashing lights, I see something—no, _someone_ as they peek from behind a wall _._ My heart races wanting to jump out of my chest when I recognize that dark shade of red hair and those swirling silver eyes as they stare up at me in confusion. My body moves then without my knowing. I skirt around the globe and run at Akio as he fully comes out of the darkness.

"How did you fi—" The air and words get pushed out of his lungs as my whole body crashes against his. My arms reach up and embrace him, holding him close to me as I can't help but laugh. Something pricks at the corners of my eyes as my small bout of laughter— _of_ _relief—_ escapes me.

"Akio!" I cry out holding him tightly. The way my arms cling around his shoulders make him hunch down to my level as I stand on my toes. Frankly, though, I don't care how uncomfortable this is for either of us. _I'm just so…_ "Thank goodness you're okay." The pricking from before are tears that I now realize want to spill over but I wipe my face against my arm and his shoulder to be rid of them. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't stop him from taking you. It must've been hard...and horrible…"

His hands slowly come up to my shoulders to try and pull me away from him. Despite that, his grip is gentle and I reluctantly let go so he can get me a bit at arms length. Silver eyes stare at me and although his expression is mostly the usual standoffish face I've come to expect, a glint of something comes to his eyes as they swirl in their endless mercury.

Something in me thinks of it as two different things. Grief...and a silver of remorse. The corner of his lips pulls up as he brings one of his hands up to my face to wipe at what's left of tears on my eyes.

"Looks like you're the one who had the hardest time," he whispers under his breath. The glint disappears from his eyes before he gives me the smallest of smiles. It's a smile all the same to me. "I guess I should thank you."

I'm shaking my head before smiling myself and giving him back his space. "You don't have to."

"Right…" he says with a sigh through his nose. "You're just looking out for yourself too." His hand comes to the bracelet around his wrist as he fidgets with it.

It hurts that he misinterprets me like that. _But if that's what he thinks, I just have to make things clear for him._ Frowning, I punch at his chest hard making him choke a bit. He holds the spot where my fist hit him and groans before looking up at me.

"What the hell was that for?"

"I didn't save you to save myself, you idiot." Hearing this, Akio turns to look up at me and I glare back. "I saved you because you're my friend and I was worried." His eyes grow slightly wider but his head lowers too fast for me to notice whether that was it or if I'd just seen things.

Akio scoffs and stands up straight with his hand still at his chest but a half crooked smile on his face. "I'm honored."

"Why did that sound sarcastic?"

"Who knows," he says and reaches up to pat my head. He walks past me towards the globe where Jack lands on but as he passes by me, I think I hear an even softer 'thanks, Aya' before he lets go and walks ahead.

 _Did you hear that Rin?_

" _Yes, I did. I suppose congratulations are due. However, we have slightly bigger problems in our hands at the moment."_

Lifting my gaze to the globe and to Jack as he talks to Akio make me agree to that. Trotting up close to them, I reach out to touch the cold metal and watch as every light goes out. They snuff out like flames in the middle of a storm but one continues to burn despite the tempest.

Jack recognizes it immediately. "Jamie."

"Who?" Akio asks. I'm not all that sure either when he turns to me for an answer.

Jack climbs down to meet us and turns to me to explain. "Jamie. We woke him up by accident when we were collecting the teeth. He _saw_ them."

He saw North and the others? Things click in place when I realize what that means and why this kid's light is still burning bright. "That's why he still believes in them."

Akio looks between us before shaking his head. "Can you slow down and explain what happened while I was gone?"

"No time," Jack points out. He hovers up intent on leaving but then looks down at us. He and I seem to arrive at a similar conclusion. If he wants to get to Jamie before Pitch does, we can't be slowing him down.

"Go to him, Jack."

"What about you?"

"We'll catch up." _Some way._

He seems to understand that and flies off leaving a flurry of snow in his wake. Akio speaks up then as I turn back to him, "Great. We get to play catch up now." Akio turns every which way looking for something before turning to me. "Where's your lizard? It could really be useful right about now."

The bleak reminder of that saddens me a bit before I open the flap of my bag to show Aury to Akio. His eyes widen at seeing him like that and I try my best to succinctly explain to him what happened. "Sandman disappeared. And since Aury's a dream—"

"He's disappearing too." My brow knitted at hearing that but I have no time to ask him how he knew that before he starts digging through the pouch on the back of his belt. He finds what he's looking for quickly and pulls out a white gourd with a cork stopper. Akio uncorks the gourd and tries reaching down to get Aurelius out of my bag but I instinctively close it and bring the bag closer to me. He sighs, exasperated before lifting the gourd for me to see. "It'll help it."

"What even is it?"

"Spring water from where I lived at. It has healing properties." When he sees that he hasn't got me 100% convinced, he rolls his eyes before taking a tiny sip of it. "See? Nothing wrong."

"Will it really help him?"

"It will once you let me give it to him."

Although I'm half-convinced, I try to trust him on this. Where I'm concerned, it's easy to put my trust on him since I'd be the one suffering any consequences, but if it concerns anybody else, then that's a whole different story. But I let myself calm down enough to take Aury out of my bag and hold him in my arms. Akio comes closer and we manage to open Aury's mouth enough to get him to drink some of the water. The little bit that Akio pours down seems to sparkle in the dim lighting, it's not clear but instead a soft blue with white specks. It looks like water with diamond dust. But the little bit that we pour down Aury he manages to drink up and we stand there waiting.

I'm about to tell Akio that it didn't work before the gentle flutter of wings takes me by surprise. A gasp comes out of me as his tail comes up to wrap against my wrist. Aury manages to flail his wings enough to keep in the air for a while before landing on my outstretched hand. A grin parts across his body and it gets me to smile. Even when his color isn't all that back still, I'm happy to at least see him well enough to move again.

Embracing the little gold Spirit, I hold him in my hands before Akio and myself. "Aury, think you have enough in you to take us to where Jack and the others are?" Aurelius takes a look at the globe and at the last shining light before his body shines and morphs. It takes a minute but he's able to change into a Ryu Dragon again. This time his shape doesn't seem to falter like it did before. I waste no time in mounting him and once he puts his gourd away, Akio follows suit. Aury gives flying a try since it'll be both of us this time before taking off.

I don't know how he does it but he manages to take us all the way from the South Pole to where Jack and the rest of the Guardians are quickly enough. Seeing as we're close enough, I get Aury to land on a chimney nearby as both Akio and I keep an eye out for anybody that we might recognize even through the darkness of the night. The ringing of bells brings my attention up to the sky in time to see North's sleigh fly out of control and crashland some blocks away.

"There they are! Aury, can you—" But before I can ask, his body starts to switch back. Akio panics somewhat at the unexpected change but I manage to get him off of Aury in time to catch him once he changed back to his smaller form. Smiling down at him, I cradle him against my cheek before I let him wrap his tail around my neck and snuggle against it. "You've done great, Aury. Get some rest now." It's then that I turn to Akio and point out towards the rooftops nearby. "We've got to help the Guardians protect that last light. You up to some jumping?"

"Sure am." That confirmation comes along with each of his feet coming slightly up before tapping against the floor. The dark energy seems to cover the underside of his feet and when he gives it a light test by leaping over to the next rooftop, he seems to almost weigh close to nothing judging by the height that he's able to get. "Can you keep up?"

A lopsided grin comes to my lips before I take out Ares and dash towards the edge of the roof. The moment I jump, point Ares towards the next rooftop and extend it. It catches between tiles and wood and I'm able to vault my way across and even some feet ahead from Akio. "You guys need to stop doubting what I can do." That said, I run ahead of him and keep on vaulting from roof to roof as he follows close behind with each jump he takes.

We manage to reach just as North, Tooth, and a diminutively cute bunny dash away from Jack while huddling close to a child, Jamie. A whistle is enough to stop Akio and get the Guardians' attention.

They're surprised to see me and even more so to see Akio as he jumps back to my side. Grabbing onto Akio, I jump down and bring us closer to them as they join us midway. "Need some help?"

"Boy, are we glad you're okay," North tells me with a hand on my shoulder. The weight he puts on me though and that he's using one of his swords to lean on makes it clear that he's not really in the best of shape. None of them are. Tooth can't even fly. And by that logic…

My eyes turn down to the small rabbit in the group. "Oh geez. Bunny, that's you, isn't it?"

"Things took their toll on all of us," Tooth explains as she comes closer to me. Now that she's standing, I can tell that she's barely my height if not a few inches shorter. "But right now what matters is protecting the last light." They move apart to show us the boy they were escorting away.

Coming closer and bending a bit over to see him better, I smile down at him. "You must be Jamie."

He nods before asking, "And who're you?"

"Their friends," I assure him before standing up straight myself to look at the Guardians. "And we're going to help keep you safe from Pitch."

None of them hesitate to take the help and with Bunny leading while the rest of the Guardians follow suit, we follow to protect Jamie at all costs.

But as we take the rear to protect them from there, I can't help but feel guilty about having given our joined help without asking Akio first. After doing whatever I have to on my own, I guess I got used to getting carried away by my emotions and what's right in front of me.

Without glancing at him, I speak up for only him to hear while running through the streets. "Sorry about that. I know you don't like doing unnecessary things but they've helped me a lot ever since you got taken. They promised to help me get you back, and they did. I just—I couldn't say no to them when they desperately needed the help."

Silence comes over us for a few moments before a scoff makes me turn up to him slightly annoyed and embarrassed. Akio's expression doesn't change from its usual aloofness for a second but as he gives me a sidelong glance it gains a certain gentleness that I can't describe before he smiles. At that moment, I don't know why but he looks so much like the woman from his memories. _He looks like his mother when he smiles._ "It's the most prudent option considering our current predicament. And also...well, according to what you said earlier friends help each other out, right?"

His words make a huge grin come to my lips and I nod in agreement. I guess this is as good a confirmation as I'll get that we're past being strangers.

 _Akio and I are friends. Gosh, why am I so elated about this?_

" _Perhaps Sora's bias stuck more to you than you thought after being so comfortable with wearing his mask for so long."_

That comment gets me to chuckle but all joy rushes out of me when I hear the ruckus overhead. Jack and Pitch are fighting up in the sky; he's keeping him at bay and away from Jamie. But Pitch isn't the only one hunting him down. Nightmares—both Pitch's and Dream Eaters—appear from the shadows, hounding the Guardians and Jamie down. They're coming from every possible angle and they're way more than I can keep count of in my head.

"Spread out." Akio's sudden commanding tone takes me by surprise but he's back to his serious self as the dark energy sips from his hands like thick mist. "I'll handle the ones on the ground. You chase after the ones on the rooftops. I'm sure you can do that much, right?"

All the answer he gets from me is a feral smirk before I vault myself with Ares over rooftops to reach the Keeba Tigers prowing above. Taunting them with a few taps of my staff, they charge at me without warning. Although they're fast, I'm well protected with Haruka's ribbon and it gives me enough to time to counterattack. From rooftop to rooftop, I keep catapulting through and taking any Nightmare that gets in my way. Glancing below me, Akio isn't having much trouble either with Pitch's nightmares. They dissipate into black sand with one of his punches. We both manage to keep the Guardians and Jamie safe and follow them into an alleyway where Jack suddenly drops from the sky.

Rejoining them on the ground, Jack points out the obvious in surely both Akio's and my mind. Pitch has gotten too strong with how much fear he's amounted. Jack can't defeat him anymore. Darkness swallows everything around us as a shadow passes by beneath accompanied by a cackle. The Guardians huddle closer together making sure to keep Jamie safe while Akio and I take the forefront. As the two more capable of fighting, we're pretty much the only defenses they've got. Light bulbs burst and their light extinguishes as a ghostly hand passes over them; a threat and promise to what he intends to do to force Jamie to stop believing. So many more of his nightmares and even more Dream Eaters appear from the darkness to corner us further that I don't think Akio and I alone can deal with them. He seems to know this too if the sidelong glance he gives me is anything to go by.

Pitch appears atop one of his nightmares and they approach us slowly as if playing with their prey. "So what do you think, Jamie? Do you believe in the Boogey—augh!"

The loud squawk of surprise that escapes me when a snowball hits him right in his ugly ass mug is something I don't have time to hold back. It comes out at the mere sight of it and I'm not the only one that finds it funny. Akio beside me also scoffs and tries to hide his grin against his shoulder while the rest of the Guardians show theirs gleefully. Jack turns to them and then to us with a grin of his own before saying, "Now, let's go get your friends."

The Guardians take the metal slabs and pallets laying around the alley and pass a couple to us before Jack freezes a way through. Despite no plan being discussed everybody seems to know exactly what to do. The moment the nightmares pull back from the ice and a path opens, we all rush forward sliding through the ice that Jack creates.

He makes tracks that take us on loops at exciting speeds. There isn't any hiding how much I love Jack's way of doing things as I stand on a wood pallet and skate my way through his ice course. Akio looks to have trouble controlling which way he goes and for once I see his seriousness break as he struggles to steer the metal disc he sits on.

His eyes skim over me any chance he gets and he only seems to get more annoyed the more he watches me. "W-Why do you look l-like you're enjoying this!?"

"I am!" I confess with a ring of laughter. Ahead of us, Jack creates another loop, a larger and higher one, and as the Guardians slide ahead of us I see Bunny fall from his disc and caught by North. Wanting to put him more on edge, I leap midway through the loop and let gravity take over. I hear Akio's distressed voice as he calls out to me but it dies halfway through his throat when I land on Bunny's disc below me. Though I stick the landing it takes a bit of a toll on my ankles and it forces me to sit down on this one as we continue to slide through the ice.

"You idiot! You almost gave me a damn heart attack!"

Boisterous laughter comes out of me as I swiftly skid this way and that. "Good to know you have one, Aki!" Behind us, I hear more laughter as more kids join us in their winter jackets and sleds. Jamie's friends, they're believing in the Guardians again. At the end of the road, though, something terrifying awaits us. A storm of dark sand instead of the white snow I wish it were. It swarms over the city threatening to engulf it along with us.

Atop a building, Pitch mocks their tenacity. "You think a few children can help you? Against this?"

North tries to brandish his sword with what little strength he regained from these kids but it's still too little to have any effect. But Jack is right. These are just bad dreams, nothing but illusions created by the mind out of fear. _Just like my illusions._ They're only real if we believe in them.

"Oh, you'll protect them?" Pitch derides with a smug smirk. "But who will protect you?"

The question makes something in me ignite. I can't describe it well at first but the more the query repeats in my head the brighter that ignited flame burns. It's an urge— _a desperate need_ —to prove his words wrong.

" _ **Even if our world is engulfed in darkness and it becomes the darkest of pits, it doesn't mean that there isn't anymore light. Light will exist even in the darkest abyss. All you have to do to see it is be willing to believe it's there."**_

A voice I don't recognize echoes in my head, it's words ringing true to darkness that Pitch threatens them with isn't absolute no matter how much it seems that it is. His threats and these fears he spoon feeds them have as much power as we give them.

 _And he is getting none from me._

I'm moving before I know it but I'm not against it. My feet take the few steps I have to in order to stand in front of the Guardians and before Pitch; I brandish Ares to rest it along the length of my right arm. A glare is set on me and Pitch is the only recipient.

He scowls, his eyes set glaring down at us—at me. "You Rescuers are nothing but a powerless vermin."

"I may be a vermin," the ends of Ares react with the tight grip I take on it with one end igniting and the other a spear, "But I'm the farthest thing from powerless."

The quiet _clack_ of footsteps catch my attention and the glance I spare gives me Akio as he steps forward to stand by my side, fists at the ready with dark energy. He doesn't say a thing but he doesn't need to. His actions speak louder than any words he's ever said.

Almost like he's saying, _I'm here with you too._

" _You have us, master."_ The burning sensation and added pressure against my eyes tells me that much as well as my powers activate, a red tinge flooding the edges of my vision.

With them by my side, I have the confidence to boldly claim, "I'll protect them."

"I will too." Jamie's remark is followed by the brave little boy himself as he comes to stand between Akio and I and coming a few steps in front of us. The voices of the other kids join in chorusing his reply as they stand with his friend.

Pitch loses his patience and sends his hoard of nightmares towards us, the dark sand falling like an avalanche. Jamie words are wiser than his years belie and it's an answer that although simple is very much correct.

"I do believe in you. I'm just not afraid of you."

The avalanche reaches us and I'm ready to burn as much as I'm able to but before I get the chance, it reaches Jamie's extended hand first and turns to the beautiful gold that I remember from Sandman. It swirls around us caringly, like the touch of an old friend, before the tendrils fly off into the sky.

Akio touches one and the golden sand and it gives off a weird hiss as it engulfs the dark energy to dissipate it from his hand. "What is this?"

"Dream sand," I reply barely whispering as one comes close enough for me to touch. It's warm. And alive. That same tendril whirls around me before coming into my bag. It catches me unaware and before I can even look, something begins to bulge out from it. The flaps open and a golden blob shoots out into the sky. It's hard to see at first but his small shape starts taking up again as more swirls join in. His wings unfurl from around him and Aurelius appears in a flurry of golden sand. The grin that parts him is animated and he swoops down towards me. I don't hesitate to open my arms to catch him as we both spin around and his wing span grows to cuddle me in his kind of embrace. A chuckle bubbles out of me as he flies back and his shape morphs. The small golden ball disappears in the blink of an eye and turns into a golden Keeba Tiger that lands with a mighty roar before us.

When the remaining nightmares charge things grow hectic as a battle ensues. Yetis and elves from the North Pole where here, even the stone eggs from the Warren too. They help the kids to fight and protect them and that leaves the Dream Eaters to us three. Aurelius revs eager to battle and lunges forward to maul a Nightmare counterpart out of existence. He goes on a spree with Akio and myself following behind it. Fighting now feels strange but not in a bad way— it's invigorating being able to fight again with reckless abandon. Not only did Aurelius and Haruka's gift have my back but any misstep I take, I find Akio there at the ready to finish what I start.

Our styles are distinctly different but they merge almost seamlessly to my utter amazement. Bursts of ice and darkness take my attention as they appear overhead in the rooftops. The Guardians are quick to chase after Pitch along with Jack and I jump into that bandwagon without hesitating. Alone I can't reach the heights they're on but once they reach the streets I'm behind them in the relentless attack against Pitch.

The moment he's corner though he disappears into the shadows and leaves us stranded. Everyone searches every which way they can but it's a distinct sound that takes my attention. My whole body turns with the rest and Bunny's warning at Jack alongside Pitch raising his scythe makes my blood boil.

My eyes sear and my whole vision turns red when I cry out, "I won't let you!" My shout grabs his attention for the briefest of seconds but the moment his eyes meet mine is enough for me and too late for him. The grand snake I summon launches at him with jaw wide open and fangs glistening in poison. Pitch shrieks and swings his scythe at it giving me enough time to reach Jack and pull him back. The moment I do, I break eye contact with Pitch and the illusion shatters leaving the Boogeyman to scan for the serpent. The moment he realizes what I did, he veers his scythe threatening to attack when a golden whip catches his wrists and hauls him away—

Towards a swirling pillar of golden sand.

We see it from where we are and a smile splits across my face the instant Sandman stands apart from his sand. It's amazing how fast Sandman knocks out Pitch but once he does, he restores the dreams that were stolen from so many with his dream sand.

And like that it ends, leaving me breathless at the mere sight of something so wondrous happening around me.

 _Guess travelling between worlds never loses its charm._

"Aya!" At hearing Akio, I'm turning on my heels but the moment I do, Aurelius pounces me to the ground and starts licking at my face without a care in the world. He ignores me through what few words I manage to get out and only steps back when Akio pulls him by his neck. When he does though, all I do is throw my arms over both of them and hold them tightly.

"I missed you both!"

Aury licks the side of my face again making me chuckle before turning to lick Akio's as well and getting a disgusted groan from him that makes me laugh even harder. Pitch's sudden angry voice takes our attention but he's harmless now. That much is obvious by the mere fact that none of the children can see him anymore.

Like the coward he is, he runs away and the Guardians chase after him with Bunny's tunnels. Aurelius stands up to growl in their general direction and I manage to catch him as he dashes out. I have to endure the awkward position of hanging off of Aury's side to avoid falling. Behind us Akio's emblazoned purple figure catches my eye; he must be using that power of his to catch up to us. Aurelius stops at a snowy hilltop that overlooks a frozen lake; when he stops, my grip is close enough to gone that I fall off and slam hard against the ground and eat a mouthful of snow. Spitting it out as I sit, my eyes come to the nightmares that linger around the place a second before they rush at Pitch and drag him back to the dark hole he came from.

Aurelius snorted, a puff of gold coming from his nose, before he returned to being his old playful self. Heavy footsteps landing not far from us let's me know that Akio finally reached us. He bends over leaning on one knee and pants somewhat heavily as the dark energy vanishes from his feet. Both of us go to him concerned but he waves us dismissively and takes a few moments to recover.

"You sure you're alright?"

He nods, red curls bouncing with the gesture as he stands up to meet my eyes. "Fit as a fid—ah!" Him and I both shriek when Aury pushes us over the hill and we tumble down to hit the frozen lake hard and slide across.

A pale hand reaches down to me as I rub my aching legs and I follow it up to meet bright blue eyes and a wistful smile. "Need a hand?"

A lopsided grin of my own spreads across my face and I take his offer as we stand hand in hand. "Thanks." Jack takes his hand briefly and digs into the pocket of his sweater before pulling out a golden cylinder and shows it to me. "What's this?"

"Teeth." He scoffs slightly and angles it better when I raise an eyebrow. "Pitch said that it'd be something you'd want. Memories of someone you were looking for."

Eyeing the cylinder better, the small face on one end takes my attention. A brunette girl with blue-green eyes. _They're Ayano's._ My hands reach out and take the cylinder to let my fingers graze over the diamond pattern decorating the front.

 _Rinto, do these…?_

It takes a moment but she finally answers. _"Yes, they appear to contain a memory like the ones from before."_

Knowing that, I turn up to him with a furrowed brow. "When did you get these?"

"Same time when I got mine." His smile turns sombre but doesn't leave. "I'm sorry I left you guys like that. I now know that I never should have done that."

"Hey," Bunny says as he crosses his arms over his chest, "All's forgiven. You're a Guardian after all."

"That is," Tooth intervenes flying around, "if that's what Jack wants."

"So, what do you say, Jack?" North asks with a resounding clap of his hands, "Should we make it official?"

His eyes turn downcast as he searches the thick ice beneath our feet for some sort of answer but before he can even think of declining, I smack his back hard pushing him forward. His gaze lifts to me and I simply grin back reassuringly. "The Guardian of Fun has a great ring to it, don't you think?"

Jack snorts before looking back at the Guardians and nodding. One of the Yetis that made it to where we are gives North a heavy-looking leather bound book that he opens. "Then it's time you take oath." Footsteps around me tell me of others who've come here; beside Akio and Aurelius, the kids are there too along with other creatures. North's speech is one I commit to memory knowing that the job of many people I know isn't that much different.

 _We all protect the light, oath or not._

"Then congratulations, Jack Frost, for you are now, and forevermore, a Guardian." The loud huzzah that ensues gets all of us to laugh and smile and cheer as a new Guardian joins their ranks. Aury jumps around from joy and Akio claps with a smile and I do the same.

Soon though, just as the sleigh and its reindeer roll back around, it's time for them to leave and as Jack turns to Jamie to say his goodbyes, I go to the Guardians feeling in me a longing that doesn't want me to leave. I like being here with them. These symbols that personify the very things we wish to protect. I rush to Tooth and Sandman, the former hugging me while the latter pats my head alongside Aury as he and Akio step closer to me.

Bunny comes next and gives my chin a few playful bumps, "Keep that smile going, a'ight?"

"Will do." Turning to North, I can't help but run at him and wrap my arms around him. He chuckles and his arms do the same embracing him wholly. "Thanks for everything."

"I want to thank you too." Pulling back, my brow furrows from how odd I find that. North smiles and motions his hand out towards the happy children that look around at the flurry of golden specks that hover around them. "You helped fight Pitch. You helped bring the light back to the children."

"I just did what anybody else would've," I say unable to keep my thoughts to myself.

"Not everybody who has power to help chooses to," he corrects, "and that you did confirms that you are Rescuer."

My brow knitts further from how confused I am that he's thrown this name back again. "You've all kept saying 'Rescuer this' and 'Rescuer that' but I don't even know what a Rescuer even is. How can I be one when I don't know?"

North chuckles as if what I said amused him in some way. Before I can ask how or why, he lets me stand at arms length and motions to the others with an outstretched hand. A knowing smile comes to them all and they come closer as North continues.

"A Rescuer is warrior chosen to protect all light, even light that falls to the deepest of darknesses. As children, they see world differently and with wonder of how it could be." Closing his outstretched hand and opening it again shows a small light, a red twinkle almost like a bright star.

"As they grow, they hold close the memories of the child they used to be—" Tooth reaches out her hand and adds another twinkle to the light in North's hand and makes the light a mix of red, pink, and purple, "—so they never forget how bright the light can be even in the darkest of times."

"Rescuers become fierce warriors," Bunny says with a smirk of his own as he adds a green twinkle to the growing light, "who hold the hope of making a better tomorrow for those they vow to protect."

"And—" North's voice comes back and he turns down to Sandman who reaches up to place a golden speck of light to the bright star, "They are ones who fight to make dreams of a better tomorrow come true."

The lights now together take a better shape in his large hand and the brightness dies down to give me a better look at what he holds in his hand. The glass star is as big as the palm of his hand, joined in the middle by a golden star and four of the five ends filled with their respective colors and something that reminds me of each of them: gifts and decorated pine trees, brightly colored eggs, tiny fairies, and golden sand.

Taking the familiar object as he presents it to me, I hold it tenderly knowing how valuable it is. _A Star Shard._

"You may not know what Rescuer is but just because you don't know, does not mean you cannot be one." North closes my hands over the Star Shard and holds my hands in his. _They look so much smaller._ "Though you do not know of it yet, you fight battle that goes beyond any of us Guardians, even Manny up there." His gesture upwards to the fading moon makes me chuckle under my breath and he smiles as his hold tightens just a tad bit. "But just because that is case, it does not mean that you fight it alone. If you ever find yourself needing help, use this to reach us. Call us and no matter when, no matter where, we shall answer."

"It is the least we can do after how much you've helped us," Tooth adds as she comes to hover beside North.

"You may still be an ankle-biter yourself," Bunny says with a scoff, "but you're sure to grow into a fine Rescuer in time."

Sandman bounces up to stand between Bunny and North to vigorously nod and show a thumbs up with his hands and even his dream sand.

"What are you talking about, bunny?" I spin on my heels at hearing Jack speak up. Seemingly done with his farewells, he comes to us with his staff hanging over his shoulders and arms hanging over it. "Aya's pretty much a so-called Rescuer already, isn't she? She helped save you guys, after all." His goofy smile turns sincere and he takes his staff properly in his hand as he comes near me. North lets go of my hands at seeing this just in time to let Jack put a finger to the upright part of the star still unfilled. It turns blue and inside tiny snowflakes bounce around. "Which is to say that they owe you a great debt. Myself included." He rapted the top of his staff playfully against my head, "So don't you hesitate to let us know, you hear?"

The Start Shard, despite being made of glass, feels warm in my hands and I bring it closer to me, holding it dearly to my chest. "I will. Thank you, all of you."

He bounces off to the sleigh just as North taps on the slick red wood. Knowing we had to depart soon too, I call Aurelius over from Sandman's side and with no need for me to ask, he turns into a Ryu Dragon and angles his wing for us to mount him. Storing the Star Shard in the satchel North gave me, I made it small enough to hold just that before climbing onto Aury. Akio does the same quickly after me and with both of us secure, Aury takes off into the sky.

Instinctively, I hide my face against Aurelius' neck as soon as he takes off but a pair of arms reach forward and a warmth comes against my back holding me in place. "It's alright," I hear Akio's voice softly speak through the wind that blows against us as we gain more height, "I've got you." And he does. His hands are next to Aury's wings and secure me in my seat. His closeness doesn't bother me; it's comforting, actually, and it soothes me enough to lift my gaze. The sight before me leaves me at awe as a red dawn comes over the sky.

 _Red…_

" _Bet you don't know why the sun sets red."_

It doesn't just set red, Axel. It begins that way too. _What ends it also brings it back._ My chest tightens and I feel my eyes burn but for a whole different reason at remembering his words. Wiping my eyes though gives me away and Akio leans forward to ask me, "You alright?"

I nod, not trusting my voice to not crack if I speak. Taking the teeth from my pocket, I run my thumb across the diamond pattern before patting Aurelius' head and leaning forward for him to hear me.

"...think you can take us where this leads, buddy?"

He makes a sound and turns to look at me over his shoulder. His mouth is wide open and I place the cylinder in it. It's gone and swallowed before I know it and it only takes Aury a few moments before he's able to gather the memory. A light gathers at his mouth and he shoots out a ray that opens a portal which we swiftly fly into it. Unlike before where the pane of glass appeared beneath us, we break through it at full speed and like before we're not hurt by the shards that fly by us.

Instead the darkness engulfs us whole as we break through and before I know it, Aury is gone from beneath us and we're falling. Holding my breath at the sudden pressure that comes to my chest, I remind myself to breathe. I force myself to inhale through my mouth but at doing that air isn't the only thing that comes through.

Water—droplets of it.

Blinking my eyes open, I'm no longer falling; I'm outside in the middle of a clouded day. Everything seems colored gray...and black. The people around moreso. It's a large crowd and they're gathered around something. I can't see what it is. Moving doesn't help; no matter how much I want to, I can't force myself.

Whatever happened here, Ayano—the one before me—didn't want to be near it. The whispers of idle chatter reach my ears even through the sound of the rain that pellets around us.

" _Poor children."_

" _They shouldn't be alone right now, should they?"_

" _Where is he?"_

" _Ansem is just as pained as they are. They all lost someone today."_

 _Lost?_

The thought brings more senses into the forefront. Now I don't just feel the water on me, drenching me from head to toe and weighing me down, I feel somebody leaning on me. Two on either sides and another against my abdomen. Looking down, I see my arms wrapped around the two boys on my side—Ienzo and Haruka as they cry, they're hands holding onto me tightly. Before me I recognize Kairi by her hair since I can't see any part of her face as she too weeps against my stomach. For some reason, I'm not crying though the immense grief I feel has my heart and lungs tight in its cold grasp. It's like I'm holding back my tears on purpose.

Why?

 _They need me more._

The thought almost doesn't seem like mine but it's intermingled too much with my own that I can't tell the difference. The crowd shifts and leaves me a better view of what everyone has in their regards and my breath stops along with the beating of my heart at the sight.

Mounted against a fountain that isn't running but is lavishly decorated in all kinds of flora is a large framed picture of Thea. Ribbons of black and blue hang all around the fountain along with an array of candles sizzled now by the rain give it a more somber look.

 _It's a funeral._ A memorial, really. There wasn't a body here. They weren't burying anybody. Somehow that made it more heartbreaking.

The memory suddenly cracks then and breaks apart before my eyes leaving pieces of glass behind that pass by me as I fall again. This time, there isn't a need for me to focus so hard on the pieces that run past us. They seem to come together themselves as if wanting to fix what broke in spite of the noticeable cracks it'll have. The image is clear despite this though and I'm taken aback by the sudden view of a dark room.

Although I try to focus to see it better, I don't have enough time to do so when hands shove me back into a small cupboard. It looks too small for me to even be sitting up right but I manage somehow. It's when I see who leans down to talk to me through the darkness and recognize the pair of bright silver eyes that stare back at me that I understand why.

 _I'm seeing this through some else's eyes too._ And I know whose.

Akio's mother looks so much different than him. Long hair was swept to one side and braided together loosely. Although dark, the faint moonlight shining through somewhere nearby lets me make out the grayish blue color of her hair that turns almost a faint purple at the tips. In contrast, the top fades into a lighter color seeming almost white. The side left exposed from how her hair was styled shows off her ear; it has a few pierced holes left empty but from her lobe hung a familiar earring.

 _It looks like Akio's necklace._

It looks exactly like the earring I found.

Her eyes have a hazy look to them that make her look amiable in contrast to how they make Akio appear aloof. But the color is the same. A grayish silver specked in brown that against the moonlight appeared like pools of molten mercury shining in the dark. Instead of gentle though her eyes seem panicked and the expression on her face seems to be the same.

She caressed my face— _Akio's face—_ with a gentle hand and showed a meek smile as if trying to be reassuring. "Listen, my love, and listen very carefully to what I tell you."

"Mom?" His voice is high-pitched, scared and anxious at his mother's words.

She hushes him with a kind hand that cups his cheek and comes to stroke his head lovingly. "I know it's scary, Akio, but you have to listen to me. I'm going to close the doors and you will remain hidden here. I need you to promise me that you will not come out no matter what you hear or what you see."

"But mom, why—"

"Promise me, Akio."

"I...promise."

Her stern expression changed back to a warm one and she whispered 'good' before leaning in and placing a soft kiss against my forehead. "I love you, son." With that said, she closes shut the doors of the cupboard. I'm sure that I would be able to see through the slits across the door if I tried but Akio refuses to. He's too scared.

At first there's nothing but silence. Out of the blue, muffled voices are heard and they speak unintelligibly. I don't know if it's Akio's hearing or mine that's not working but it doesn't matter in the long run. Before I can figure which it is, a scuffle ensues that makes me jump in my skin. A tiny hand covers my mouth to keep the cry I feel wanting to surge from out of my heaving chest. Things are thrown about, some even hitting the curboards and blocking most of the door except for the top third of it from my sight. It's over as quickly as it starts though and silence comes back with no warning.

Now is when Akio decides is a good time to look through the slits. Through the moonlight, I manage to make out strands of silver hair that flock in and out of my view.

"We're taking her too?"

I have no idea who speaks but another voice that goes along with the silver strands I see tell me it isn't the man just in our field of view. It's someone else. But the silver haired man speaks after with a blase tone to his voice. "Yes. Even if they are thinned out through generations, surely her abilities may be of use to us." More noise follows and a dark figure carrying what looks to be Akio's mother's unconscious body covers the slits.

A hand reaches out but is stopped short not by the cupboard door but by a thin pane of glass. My eyes follow the hand and widen at seeing Akio, the one I've been traveling with this whole time staring out through those same slits, his eyes hidden by the way his hair falls over his face. His fingers sprawl across the pane and through it and the slits, I see the silver haired man pass by again. He stops and it makes me hold my breath as he lower his head. Suddenly, he turn in our general direction and even I cover my mouth with my hand at the sight of those eyes.

Gold.

A deep growl beside me takes my attention away from those eyes— _such familiar golden eyes—_ and I turn just in time to see Akio's energy engulfed fist punch through the pane of glass breaking the memoryscape completely.

The fall this time is different once it shatters around us. We're not stopping unlike the times before. We just keep falling. Akio struggles to find himself around this freefall and Aury can't keep up with either of us. Although I'm panicking on the inside, I hold it in and instead turn to see Akio better. Once I'm somewhat steady, I reach out my hand to him; he struggles more until he finds a steady enough position to grasp my arm. Our arms locked, it's a bit easier for us two to steady our fall even as the wind continues to rush past us.

Just as I'm about to reach with the other, a dark portal appears and from it a giant blue hand springs out. It grabs what's nearest to it which ends up being Akio's other arm. Once it has him, another hand springs from the mass of blue and easily takes my whole body in its grasp before it starts wildly yanking at us. It's desperately trying to pull us apart but we keep holding on, fighting just as hard to stay together. But I feel his grasp loosen bit by bit until it finally breaks. The hands toss us in opposite directions and though I'm screaming his name at the top of my lungs, I don't know if he can hear me. My only hope is that he does.

 _Please, please, be okay._

The darkness around me swallows me whole again and when it does, my fall finally ends when I hit concrete and brick streets. Hard. So hard that my head hurts instantly and my vision starts to blur despite the bright lights that blind me. I can't hold onto any semblance of consciousness for long and soon enough a different darkness takes me.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _Oh I'm glad this didn't take a whole month like last time. Hope you guys didn't mind waiting 3 weeks for this. I'm trying to get into new writing habits that'll get me working on my wips more. Not only those I'm publishing right now but also no the ones that I want to publish in the future._

 _Here's many thank yous and hugs and kisses to all of you wonderful lovelies that read this story! I know that the series didn't start strong ('sides the fact that I'm starting to regret writing this series so far in 1st person) but I love it all the same! I'm happy that these lovely children (mine and little adopted Aki) let you guys have a grand time. I've also liked to thanked_ _ **Antex**_ _and_ _ **Aviantei**_ _for their reviews and_ _ **Yusuke Kurosaki**_ _for the recent follow!_

 _And well, this chapter surely ended on a huge cliffhanger. Next time, we're reuniting with few old friends in a world that harbors the lost and homeless. Also might be meeting new enemies and FINALLY catch up to something teased in the beginning of this story! Look forward to that! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and hope you stay tuned for the next update! :3_


	10. Memoir X: Beyond the Illusion

**Memoir X:**

 _Beyond the Illusion_

* * *

Something told Haruka not to do this. No matter what he saw, he would be powerless to stop it after all. But concern gnawed at him all the same. It never left him after Ayano entered the sleeping realm to travel its worlds.

A place unknown to them. A place he could not follow.

Maybe calling it concern was an understatement considering how restless he now was. The fairies told him after he woke up from their induced sleep that Ayano entered the realm with no problems. Now all that was left was to wait. But Haruka had done his share of waiting and he was sick of it.

That deep-seated uneasiness made up his mind now as he sat on the edge of one of the lookouts in Mysterious Tower. There he held his notebook on his lap and mindlessly let himself draw out the images that came to his mind as his eyes shone an intensely shade of crimson.

It never occurred to him to develop his powers. For what they were worth, his weren't that oustanding. At least not in the vein of Ayano's. Her Deceiving Eyes could at least be used in combat. His were useless in that regard. Power—that's what mattered to Haruka right now. Were he strong enough, Ayano wouldn't have worried about him getting hurt and would've taken him along with her. Were he stronger, he wouldn't have to watch as she wasted away seeking a cure to his own predicament instead of her own.

But he had power. One that he could prod at for answers. Or so he thought at first. Yet no matter what he saw or how he drew it, none of the images made sense to him. They were always flashes of certain images that were too broken to make a whole picture or corrupted voices jumbled into incoherent messes. Nothing was clear. It never was.

Frustration clawing at his mind, Haruka snatched one of the papers out of his notebook and crumpled it up to toss it behind him.

"Gosh, that must be some artist's block to have you that upset."

Irritated eyes glanced over his shoulder to spot the mouse king as he approached Haruka. Still frustrated, he gave him his back to continue drawing what he saw despite the dryness of his eyes. Mickey didn't take his irritability to heart and instead went closer to seat next to the boy as he drew incessantly.

Gloved hands took one of the many scattered drawings which depicted a blonde girl with a red skirt and jacket behind a golden fountain and bright blinding lights of many colors as she knelt on the asphalt street, tears streaking down bright scarlet eyes. Many of the others held that in common, a blonde with red eyes in different places or doing different things; at a cathedral, riding a golden dragon, on a sleigh, in a city of gold, and in the great expanse of a ship sailing the seas. All different places with the same girl.

And by the way he was frantically drawing on and on, it was clear to Mickey that none of these things told Haruka what he wanted to know. "Worrying yourself sick isn't right, Haruka."

"I won't sit back and idly wait like you while she's out there risking herself for my sake," Haruka said through gritted teeth and pressed his pencil even harder against the page.

"I know it's frustrating. Donald and Goofy weren't that happy either that Sora's out there taking on such danger on his own. But we must understand that it's a test, something that will make them stronger. And I believe Ayano will come out stronger as well."

"Not if she vanishes first." The bleak statement made Haruka stop and clean his face off with his arm at feeling the horrible pricking at his eyes. "And don't tell me it's not happening. I've noticed how she's gotten weaker. Not being whole like she is—Yen Sid already told me what it can cause. What it's doing to her. And instead of focusing on herself, she's out there looking to cure me. I'm angry at her. But I can't be without worrying either." Clicking his tongue at finishing yet another useless drawing made him throw his notebook aside. Colored pencils and said notebook clattered onto the granite floor without care and Haruka, defeated, simply buried his face into his hands not wanting for Mickey to see the tears he couldn't help back any longer.

"Perhaps you are right." The deep baritone voice that spoke behind them made Mickey fully turn towards Yen Sid while Haruka remained fully facing the vastness of the starry sky. "But hope is something that we must not lose."

"I can't blindly hold onto it either." Haruka stood from his place and walked up to Yen Sid, eyes slightly red from crying and overusing his powers. Yet the frown he wore told more of his displeasement than anything. "I can't find anything by looking into the future."

Yen Sid's eyes scanned his lookout tower and observed the many drawings that littered it before motioning his hand towards them. "You call this nothing?"

"They tell me nothing."

"They are telling you that in spite of what is happening, she still lives."

"But they don't tell me how to keep her alive!"

Yen Sid took a long sigh before facing Haruka full on, "You've seen the extent of what a being living out of balance causes. The way it's taking over her."

"What about it?"

"For all intents and purposes, she should have vanished already."

Those news struck a chord in Haruka that drew out the air from his lungs. "Then how—"

"Ah, that's easy to answer," Mickey said with a smile and patting Haruka's shoulder. "That's because of you."

That only resulted in confusing him all the more. "Me?"

"Balance is a delicate thing, child, and for it to remain unkempt in any being is dangerous as you have seen. What she lacks—that darkness she's searching for—is something you both are lacking but which affects you differently because of where your hearts roosted during your lives. While she lacks her own, her deep-seated roots in darkness make her invulnerable to it while leaving her susceptible to light. You on the other hand, have a stronger connection with the light and thus having no darkness to guard you against foreign threats leaves you susceptible to others."

Though Yen Sid's explanation is cryptid, Haruka knew he'd heard it before somewhere else. It takes him a minute but he recalled Ayano's Deceiving Eyes, that Rinto thing, say something to a similar effect. "We compliment each other."

"And because you do, she has survived much longer than she would otherwise had," Mickey finished. "Haruka, that future you see where she continues to exist is because you continue to be by her side. And though right now, you're as far from her as you can be, there's always a connection that never breaks no matter the distance."

Haruka's anger dissipated little by little with every word Mickey said and the edges of his lips turned a bit at knowing the answer to that one. His hand reached up to grasp the clothes over his heart tenderly. "I'm always with her."

Yen Sid nodded and bend down to pick up the drawings that Haruka had thrown. Seeing him do this brought both Mickey and Haruka to help and both returned the boy his premonitions that although showed nothing, told him more now that he understood their one common, underlying meaning. "And that connection keeps her alive in her search so long as you believe in her."

Holding the papers close to his chest, Haruka took a deep breath to fully calm himself before lifting his gaze to Mickey and Yen Sid. "Sorry about snapping like that. I'm just...worried."

"You're not the only one," Mickey assured him but motioned back to the tower, "for now, how about taking a tea break?"

Haruka thought about it and decided that perhaps it was time to take a break. "But if it's alright," he said quietly now more relaxed than before if only a little, "I'd like to hear what you know about our powers. I...I want to learn how to control them better."

The wise magician gave him a solemn nod and a reassuring smile. "I will provide you with all the information that was entrusted to me."

Grateful for that, Haruka followed behind the two but as he came into the tower, the irritation of his eyes kept bugging him. It wasn't until he activated them again that he saw the image they were trying to show him.

A girl. At first it didn't seem strange to him, not until he realized that unlike the other visions, this girl was obviously not Ayano. She was around Ayano's age though and the snapshots he saw of her were only a couple and vague. She sat at the edge of a grand fountain in front of colorful but blurry buildings. Soft caramel brown hair that touched the nape of her neck with longer tresses down either side waved in the breeze as she bounced her legs for the small golden ball on her lap. But focusing on it better, Haruka could make out a tail and pair of wings on it. It wasn't a ball at all but he couldn't quite make out what it was either.

The brunette smiled as she picked the ball in her hands and hugged it to her chest, eyes the color of a setting sun shining brightly. Those same eyes suddenly lifted and stared off to the side as a group of people came into view. The image blurred then as she approached them but Haruka managed to discern a rough number.

Not counting the girl, they were four others. Two looked like younger children, another one around the girl's age, and a taller one bathed in a soft pink hue.

A noise suddenly rung in his ears like the buzzing of a television left on static before the noise cleared and a voice he didn't know called out a name.

" _Emma."_

* * *

Bright lights come into a blurry focus when my eyes flutter open. The pain on my head is what has me first and my hand reaches up to grab a hold of the side of it as I sluggishly sit up from the hard floor beneath me. It takes my eyes a few seconds to focus more and by the time I can focus them again, all I see is asphalt beneath.

Streets. And bright lights reflecting from the sheen on them. Lifting my aching head cautiously, I cringe at the neon lights that assault my vision. Groaning, my head snaps down too late to avoid the pain from the blinding lights but as that aching dissipates, I'm already aware of where I am.

This is Traverse Town.

 _But...how did I get here?_

" _Master, the Ring,"_ Rinto says quietly as to not aggravate my pain any further. Now that my eyes are adjusting better, I manage to glean that I'm somewhere in the Fourth District if I remember correctly. Then again this town seems to have way too much neon everywhere.

Her words take some time to sink and when they do I have to force myself to recall what happened before at the Ring of the Fallen. Akio and I left the world of the Guardians, we saw Ayano's memory of Thea's wake and also Akio's. He broke through it and then we fell—no... We got dragged out of the Ring.

 _But by what?_

Thinking too much about it though made my head hurt so much more that I let that drop for now despite the bizarre feeling that's sinking in the pit of my stomach. "I guess we just have to find our way out for now, Akio."

It's when I get no answer and I lift my gaze to find nobody there with me that the feeling doubles. The vicinity is empty and the only noise that I hear is the water rushing crystal clear through the gargantuan fountain. There's no one here. Not Akio, not even Aurelius. The only solace I have that Akio isn't hurt too much is that I'm not dead. The splitting headache that might be either of ours and the faint glow of the golden bracelet made my uneasiness somewhat easier to swallow. That I wasn't dead either told me that Akio was somewhere in Traverse Town as well.

To get back on my feet was an arduous task; the whiplash I suffered from whatever pulled us apart weighs me down more than I first thought it would. My gait is wobbly and I have to stagger towards the fountain to lean against the edge and try to get some of my balance back. Geez, this has to be my injury if it hurts this much. Hoisting myself up to sit on the edge of the fountain, I reach down with cupped hands to grab some water and splash it against my face. The cool feel of it chips off some of the edge out of the headache but a sudden noise makes me forget that comfort too fast. Several portals behind me open and from them emerge a small horde of Nightmares that prawl closer and closer towards me. Hustling to get on my feet turns out to be a horrible idea and a bout of terrible vertigo makes me instantly fall to my knees. My vision swirls and I can't even lift my head away from the cobblestone but I can hear the Nightmares' feet and paws as they approach me.

The moment I manage to force my head up, one pounces but is met halfway by some kind of magic spell that I can't recognize. The _clack_ of footsteps takes my attention away from the Nightmares as a couple of people enter my field of vision and stand directly in front of me.

"Stay back!" The orange haired boy that shouts this takes his stand against the Nightmares while the other, a girl I vaguely recognize as Shiki comes my way and kneels down to help me.

"Are you alright?" she asks, her voice sounding somewhat muffled to my ears. I can't seem to find my voice anywhere so I nod to reply. Though that relieves her, she instantly turns to face the boy that's fighting the Nightmares. "Don't worry. Neku's got this." And it appears like he does. Every last Nightmare he pops out of existence makes something shine and float over to Shiki and although strange, I haven't much strength to question this.

Shiki helps me stand but at being so close to me, I can hear very clearly how winded she is. My mind reels thinking that whatever this Neku is doing, it's taking a toll on Shiki as well. "Neku, some help."

"Yeah." Neku comes running to us and helps Shiki get my sorry butt closer to the fountain again so I can lean against it and get what little semblance of balance I can back.

Once done, I mutter a soft 'thank you' and give a smile to Shiki and her friend. "Sorry for the trouble. Had a horrible landing that messed up my head a little."

"You came at the lousiest of times too." I'm torn between feeling insulted or not by Shiki's comment as she stands next to me near the fountain's edge. The black cat doll I remember her carrying around catches my attention as she moves it around. "We've got the worst case of Dream Eaters here and it's not making our mission any easier."

"Mission?" I ask. When she doesn't answer me, I turn to her friend but at remembering I know nothing about him, I share a small, reassuring smile with him. "Sorry about the whole confusing mess. I'm Aya, by the way."

"Neku," he simply states. "You're a friend of Shiki's?"

Both she and I look at each other before she chuckles and I simply crack a wider grin. "More like acquaintances. But that's not really here nor there. What mission is this that's got you fighting Nightmares?"

"It's to defeat another. A mean one at that," Shiki says with a puff of her cheeks out of annoyance. "It keeps busting out more and more Dream Eaters that it's tiring me down." She lets out a sigh that's a tad big making it almost sound superfluous. "We should also help you out with how bad you're at the moment. What do you think? Can we get a time out to rest and help her, Neku?"

He agrees readily and I'm glad that Shiki's such a trusting soul but before we can make any movement, lighting strikes so close that it startles all of us. Shiki startled out of her mind jumps back and trips on the edge of the fountain, and as she falls pulls me back with her in her dull attempt to not fall in. Though the water isn't that deep, that we're laying with our backs against the bottom of it submerges us completely and the shock from being pulled against my will startles me so much that I accidentally start gasping and swallowing water. Shiki's quick to get up and helps me get out of the water myself. But while I'm sputtering and trying not to choke on what little went through to my lungs, I don't notice who's helping Neku until Shiki and I come out of the fountain. Seeing that bunch of spiky brown hair lifts my spirits and makes my head hurt a little less.

"Sora." My voice is too quiet to be heard over the Nightmares or over him and Neku talking. Seems like they know each other. He easily convinces Neku to leave and protect Shiki while he rids the plaza of Nightmares. Shiki nods at him before taking my arm to help me; although it's a bit demeaning since I so used to handling myself, at this point in time I feel like I'd rather not die sooner than I have to. We hide until Sora finishes the Nightmares and regrettably, that damn bird brain of a Nightmare disappears before they're able to catch it.

Once back together, his eyes widen and a smile comes to him as he turns his gaze towards me. "Ayano? What're you doing here?"

"Freelance work," I say cheekily.

He chuckles and shakes his head; well, he might not believe me but at least he's not asking unnecessary questions. "You should take better care of yourself then." Raising his Keyblade over my head, a vibrant green ring glows and a crystalline flower and leaves burst from the light as a warmth showers over me. It's soothing and it gratefully takes care of the massive headache plaguing me. I thank him under my breath as a sigh of relief escapes through my nose.

"Thanks."

"Yep." Bright blue eyes turn towards Shiki and some introductions apparently need to be dealt with which Neku takes over.

While they do that, Rinto and I take some time to tally of my injuries after Sora's help. _What's the damage now?_

" _Curaga is effective against most ailments. Any lingering pain should disappear with time."_

So long as the ringing in my ears isn't permanent then I'm fine with a little pain for now. Though I'd much rather spend a little time resting, I have too many things in my plate at the moment to find any time for that. Regrettably, it seems that Joshua, with his most opportune appearance, wants to put more things on my plate besides finding Akio and Aury. But for once he says something interesting; something about the 'other imagining' of this world. I hadn't a clue that Traverse Town had been split in two and that it separated Sora and Riku's journey but the prospect sounded quite interesting.

" _Master, there's a high possibility that Akio and Aurelius are in that other imagining if only you were thrown off course and they followed the route as normal."_

Makes sense. But we should check this place out just in case. If anything, once we're done Joshua can give us a lift over to this other imagining. Guess if I want some help though, I'd gotta give a hand here in return. Though I didn't see this Dream Eater they're chasing—Spellican I think I heard Shiki say it's called—that it keeps jumping from world to world won't make it an easy catch. Joshua's plan to corner it in the Third District seems sound enough and we go with it. Sora takes the initiative and takes the lead without thinking but at giving himself a moment to do so, he stops with Shiki and Neku close behind and looks my way.

"Will you be okay to fight?"

The blatant show of concern takes me somewhat by surprise. Seeing as this is Sora we're talking about though, I should've expected it. A smile comes to my lips and I nod as answer. "I might be a bit sluggish but I'll help. So don't worry about it."

His lips taut into a line as if debating whether to believe me or not; he ends up trusting my word enough to shake the worry off of his back and wave at me to follow after them. I'm not one to tell him no after that. Yet in spite of what I said to him earlier to take away his uneasiness, I'm starting to think that I might have bitten off more than I can chew. Curaga may have healed what injuries I got from my crash landing and the subsequent whiplash but it certainly didn't alleviate all of my weariness. We're not even out of the Fourth District and I'm already winded and considerably lagging behind. That's saying something too when Neku stayed a few moments behind with Joshua and still manages to outrun me. Being dead last doesn't help my morale but I push forward to keep up.

A sudden blur of aquamarine that dashes out of the corner of my eye catches me off guard enough to stop in my tracks. None of the others hear or see me stop and I'm too taken by what I saw—the color and shape of what I think I saw run by a little too familiar—to even let them know. Instead my eyes follow the line of color left behind by whatever sprinted by into a nearby alleyway. As I stand still, a small squeak comes out from there and at focusing my eyes, I catch the glimpse of it. A bunny. A very, very small aquamarine bunny.

 _A bunny child._

The mere idea sounds ludicrous. Even with there being an absurd number of them, they all live in Wasteland. All 420 of them. There's no way one just happened to be here. A part of me is telling me to ignore it but the other half, the one that can't help but worry about those little bastards I've spent a lifetime chasing at home, urges me to chase after it. To bring it with me so I can bring it back home if it's lost. So that Oswald doesn't have to worry about it anymore if it's missing from home.

 _He's already had a handful worrying over me this past year._

Heart set, I run towards the alley and at seeing this, the bunny child's ears perk up and it dashes further away into the alleyway. This alley, though somewhat illuminated by the neon lights from all over town, is still quite dark, making it all that much harder to dodge what's littering the place while having to make haste to keep up with the rabbit. Thankfully there's a dead end up ahead that stops it in its tracks. It hesitates enough for me to lurch up and snatch it in my arms. To my utter surprise, it doesn't struggle like they often did when I pick them up and is simply calm in my arms.

A grin comes to me as I start turning it around in my hands to make sure it's alright. "Hey, fella. You're a long ways from home, you know that?" It's nose twitches once before it suddenly loses shape and melts in my hands. My mind reels as I jerk back and wipe the blue liquid off my hands as fast as I can. Terror, disgust, and confusion take a hold of me in equal measures until I see the sludge that landed on the floor move. It freaks me out enough to jump out of its way as it crawls its way towards the mouth of the alleyway. I'm too focused on it as it travels to notice anything else. It's not until a large cyan hand reaches down to the floor to let the sludge crawl up it's palm and settle there that I dare lift my gaze.

The only thing I see are a pair of bright large aquamarine eyes peeking from the dark before a light blinds me.

* * *

Aya was nowhere to be found. Akio had a hard time processing everything after finding himself at the Fountain Plaza _in_ Traverse Town but that was the first thing that he became painfully aware of the instant he came to. Not only was the bracelet on his wrist glowing but the golden ball of a Spirit was with him to. That Aurelius had left Ayano's side was puzzling at first until he remembered hearing something in the darkness before they were torn apart by those hands. He recalled her screaming his name and Aurelius', and telling the Spirit to keep him safe. The mere thought of that made him grind his teeth as he stood up trying to get a hold of his sudden vertigo.

 _Idiot. She should worry about herself more._ But in the short time of traveling with her, Akio knew this was highly unlikely. She found others' safety much more important than her own and that baffled and annoyed him in equal measures. He settled that aside for now since what mattered was rejoining with her. Though Aury was with him, Akio couldn't just leave her behind. If he was in this much discomfort, she could be in a much worse situation. And if she's unable to defend herself then…

 _Stop thinking about the worst outcome. Find her first. Worry later._ A plan set in his mind, he leveled some of his powers across his body to help with the dizziness but the abrupt thunderous explosion that resounded through made him turn towards the other side of the fountain. Over the spewing water, silver eyes locked onto a Nightmare in particular that had summoned a horde of its own to attack a trio of kids.

Akio took a moment to think; this wasn't his problem. His priority was finding Ayano. Everything else could come later. But a nagging voice in his head that now sounded a little too much like hers echoed through.

" _Just because it's none of my business doesn't mean it doesn't matter or it's not worth fighting for."_

 _Damn it, Aya._ But he couldn't deny that those words moved him to coat his legs with dark power and take the leap that would bring him to the other side. The landing created a good enough area of attack that with the impact and a swipe of his leg towards the Nightmares sent a good number of them out of the way or completely popped them out of existence.

"Yo, who the heck are you getting in our way!" Akio looked over his shoulder to look at the loud punk that shouted so carelessly without thanking him for the help. Then again Akio wasn't expecting thanks from either of them. Either? _Weren't there three before?_ Eyes straying, he found the larger Nightmare that had summoned the rest being chased by another. Though it was just his back, Akio recognized the silver hair of the boy from Cite de Cloches. _Aya's friend._

He bet that if anybody would know where to find her, it'd be someone who knew her. Still, there were things to take care of here before he could even think of chasing after them. Focusing back on the Nightmares, he let his fist charge up with darkness and rushed in to vanish them one after another. Thunderaffes weren't anything special. Though fast they didn't pack much of a punch in their magic and simply coating the soles of his feet for a speed boost was enough to keep up with them. The Tatsu Steeds were even easier since ranged attackers like them were at a greater disadvantage against brawlers like himself. Nightmares weren't much of a challenge in general, though the same couldn't be said of those weird infected ones they'd been encountering recently.

In no time flat he rid the plaza of the summoned Nightmares and turned to the pair that had been left behind. "You guys' alright?"

"Yeah," the little girl answered with a welcoming smile. "Thanks for the help."

"We didn't need it anyway, yo." The older boy seemed to be the loud punk that shouted at him earlier. Akio already regretted having helped as it was and his standoffish attitude didn't help their case. Before he could say anything or simply leave for that matter, a strange spiked sphere and Joshua appeared along with it startling the two and catching Akio more off guard than he preferred to be.

"Beat, Rhyme, we're going to pin in the Third District!"

"On our way!" Rhyme called out enthused.

"It ain't getting away this time!" Beat shouted before the two went off running towards the silver haired boy's general direction.

Joshua locked gazes with Akio for a moment before saying, "Are you looking for her?"

"You know where she is?" Akio asked in return.

"Here in Traverse Town. But not really."

The vagueness of that didn't help put him in any better mood. "Joshua."

"She's in another imagining of this world. That's as well as I can explain it without going to much into detail. I would send you to where she is but how about helping us with that Dream Eater first?"

"Do I really have a choice?"

"If you really want to get back to her."

Yeah, there really wasn't a choice for him in the end. "Third District, right?"

Joshua smiled and said, "I knew you were the smart one," before disappearing along with his portal.

 _Right_. Thankfully, getting to the Third District wasn't as much of a hassle as he expected it to be. There were some hordes of Nightmares that got in the way but nothing that he couldn't rid himself of with a well placed kick or punch. The square plaza in the Third District was small enough to not get lost and the vintage point he got over the plaza from where he stood on a railing helped him examine their options. All of which were absolutely rendered mute when it opened a portal of its own and escaped Traverse Town altogether. The good that came from it leaving, he supposed, was that the keyhole of the world finally appeared and with a keyblade wielder to deal with it, his nonexistent job here was pretty much done. Just as he was about to go down and pester Joshua, however, a sudden biting cold washed over the district. It came out of nowhere and consumed the whole place in the blink of an eye; the only reason he knew it wasn't just him was because he could see their breathes as a visible puff of warm air. He wasn't the only one to notice either. Beat and Rhyme's curt comments about the sudden coldness made Joshua and Riku more aware that there was something wrong despite their apparent win.

A noise Akio couldn't recognize was subtle at first but erupted right in front of them when, from one of the buildings jumps, a creature latched onto the keyhole. He recognized the it almost instantly. It was the one he and Ayano saw back in Cite de Cloches. And that raucous sound—its silver blades scratched against the keyhole as they sunk into it.

"What is that?" Beat shouted, placing a hand out to keep Rhyme behind him.

Though he was about to answer, Akio was shocked to hear Joshua speak as he jumped down to stand beside him.. "A Night Terror. They're a nasty kind of Dream Eater."

"What is it doing to the keyhole?"

Akio shared Riku's confusion but the latter acted before anything else, rushing in to keep the Night Terror from doing whatever it intended to do. Though valiant, his effort was cut short as a bullet shot through the air and cut his run short. Riku managed to avoid it but the shot exploded into shards of ice that spread across the district the moment it impacted with the ground and morphed into a larger hoard of Nightmares that didn't waste time in charging in. With how ferocious they were, Beat and Rhyme couldn't keep up with either Riku or Akio as they shredded through a few.

Seeing this, Riku glanced over his shoulder towards Joshua and shouted, "Get them out of here!" Joshua thankfully did as he suggested and helped the two get away from the hoard that turned on Riku and Akio when deprived of two less targets to go for. But even as the two of them stood ready to counter whatever they threw, the Nightmares slowed to a crawl seemingly more interested in keeping them from escaping than attacking themselves.

A soft _click_ from the keyhole took their attention and answered their previous query before disappearing completely. _It locked it back up._ Now with the keyhole gone, the Night Terror that locked it fell with a loud _thud_ against the granite, it's long limbs twisted back in place as its blades dragged along the asphalt. The other dropped more graciously than its ally, the hard crystal _clacking_ against the floor as it reloaded its guns. Neither moved and like the other Nightmares, they remained deadly still as if attentive of something else.

"Pity." Akio tensed at hearing the familiar voice. _Teobaldo._ But no matter where either of them turned to, they couldn't find the source. "Especially when you worked so hard to get to it."

"Who's there?" Riku called out, keyblade aloft and ready to strike.

"A mere spectator. But I've gotta say that all this watching has got me a tad bit peeved." The smaller Nightmares one by one began to disappear, called back to wherever they came from. Though it relieved the enemy count, it made Akio wary all the same. If quantity didn't matter, then it was quality that he would hit them with. That alone made him all the more vigilant of the two Night Terrors still with them.

Despite this though he knew that Teobaldo wasn't just flaunting his power because he could. And regardless of his position, curiosity had the best of him. "Peeved?"

Teobaldo's reply came with no hesitation. "Extremely so now that I think better of it. You keyblade wielders are so trusting to have a Rescuer at your beck and call."

"Rescuer?" Riku muttered under his breath.

"Ayano's doing what she pleases," Akio interrupted, "I doubt she'd be the type to be bossed around like that."

"One would think so, right?" Teobaldo agreed sounding almost forlorn at the prospect of what they both said. "And yet she goes on and on putting herself in danger for others' sake. That is simply not her."

"Look here, I don't know who you are but you don't know Ayano," Riku countered, brandishing his keyblade and pointing it at the Night Terrors to make his point. "She may be reckless but the things she does, she does them for those she cares about."

The laughter the rung through the air sent chills down Akio's spine. This might be Teobaldo but he'd never heard this side of him; this person sounded frivolous and disgusted when he said, "If that's your perception of her, boy are you off the mark." The two Night Terrors that had been ambivalent up till then suddenly stepped aside and let a dark portal open between them. "You know, boy, 'Rescuers' was the name outsiders gave to people like Ayano. In reality, their true monikers belied the peace-seeking ideals of their masters and proved they were nothing but power hungry monsters like everybody else." He chuckled again and a the portal rippled turning from dark purple and black to bright cyan and dark blue hues. "But I think showing you will make it easier to understand exactly why they were known as Purgers."

Both Akio and Riku watched attentively at what exited the portal but both silver and teal eyes widened at the little girl that walked out so nonchalantly. She couldn't have been older than six years old with large crimson eyes that peeked from behind messily cut fringes. Long blonde hair was held up in a ponytail by a red ribbon and fell down to the middle of her back. Dressed in a white blouse and skirt with a contrast of color coming from the red blazer she wore over it. In her arms was a blue bunny who's head twitched back and forward, its beady eyes watching them before turning to face her. Though Akio couldn't discern who the child was, Riku seemed to instantly recognize her.

"Ayano?"

Those large crimson eyes gazed up from the rabbit in her hands with scarlet streaks of light trailing her sight. At spotting them both, her eyes widened briefly before turning back to the portal.

"They're both infected," she said quietly.

"Yes, dear, they are," Teobaldo's voice echoed through, "Sadly, they're too far gone. There's no saving them from the darkness that corrodes them now."

Ayano clutched the bunny tighter, the animal squeaking from the uncomfortable hold she had on it, and turned back to face Akio and Riku. "We can't let the infection spread. I'm sorry." The bunny landed before her and shook when she let go of it. But in the blink of an eye, it began to bloat grotesquely as it grew and grew. Large dark blue claws destroyed the ground beneath it as it leaned forward on its front legs and leaned back to let out a deafening roar.

"S-She can do that?" Akio bellowed while struggling to hold his place and not be blown away.

Though Riku did his best to stay beside him, the ferocious rabbit charged forward and slashed him aside towards a building wall to corner him. Dodging to the side, Akio spared the younger Ayano a glance and noticed the rabbit answered to her orders, charging towards Riku to fight him. It was completely ignoring him. Taking that advantage, he let the darkness envelope his fists before gunning straight for her. The little girl somehow sensed his approach and took a step back to meet eyes with him. The moment he saw those bright red eyes, a brief silhouette of a snake formed out of the blue between them and took its shape fully to charge with its jaw unhinged and fangs bared. Akio barely managed to stop himself and tumbled to the side to avoid its venomous bite. It fell onto the concrete below, the floor trembling and the streets crumbling under its massive weight. Mouth closed, it's forked tongue slipped out in warning as it slid back to Ayano's side and coiled itself around the child.

Not far away, Riku somehow managed to tear the massive toy rabbit apart, fluff flying all over the air as it fell back and disappeared into a blur of light. Akio briefly gave him a sidelong glance before motiong out with a nod of his head towards Aya. "I'd say nice job making the giant rabbit disappear if she hadn't another toy already."

Teal eyes locked onto the girl protected by the giant reptile and grimaced at the sight. Said snake coiled even tighter around her and lifted its upper body with bared fangs to snap at them as it flared the hood around its neck. Riku weighed Akio's words for a moment in his mind and one caught his attention in particular. "It vanished…" He turned back to where the rabbit had fallen only to see that there wasn't in fact anything there anymore. "It wasn't real."

"What?"

"They're illusions." Riku didn't seem to be answering him directly but it was an answer all the same. It wasn't until Riku made his keyblade disappear that Akio started to worry he'd gone crazy.

"Better get that back or she's going to have that thing maul you."

"It won't." The confidence with which he said those words made Akio's brow knit together in confusion. But despite how much he wanted to ask him what he meant, there wasn't a chance to when Riku calmly walked towards the girl and her snake. No matter what Akio shouted at him, he kept a steady pace towards her.

The snake hissed at Riku, warning him to retreat, but when that failed, it turned violent and snapped its jaw again. Yet Riku had no qualm whatsoever and continued forward. The moment the snake lurched, Akio coated the soles of his feet to get Riku out of its way but stopped short when the snake's image flickered and simply passed harmlessly through the silver-haired boy. Riku stopped only when he found himself before her. Red eyes grew wide, a mix of spite and fear in them, and she swept her arm across to keep him back while taking small steps backward.

"Stay away!"

"I'm not going anywhere, Aya."

"No, stop! I don't want to hurt you!" Those words were enough for Riku to recoil but his eyes didn't stray from her when she glared up at her.

"Hurt me?"

"I-I don't want to b-b-but I can't control it," she cried with actual tears pricking at the corner of her eyes. "He said that I had to help cleanse the world of darkness but I-I can't do that to you! You're—You're—" Pain struck her and her tiny hands came up to her face as the tears flowed down her reddened cheeks. "...you're my friend."

Riku smiled and with a few steps, crouched before her to keep their gazes locked. "Ayano, you don't have to do something you don't want to do."

"But...you and Sora," she muttered, "You're trying your best to keep everybody safe and to stave off the darkness. If I can't help—if I can't even help myself and Haruka, how am I supposed to keep you safe? I just—I just don't want… I don't want to lose anybody else anymore." Her tear-stricken face struck something in him and her words only added to that.

Akio didn't know whether what she said meant anything to him but Riku refrained from saying anything and reached out to soothingly pat the top of her head. The smile on Riku's face was small but sincere and all the little Ayano could do was stare dumbfounded at him and his actions.

"Aya, you're not going to lose us. Not Sora, not Haruka, not Kairi, and not me. And whatever it is that you can't do on your own, we'll be there to have your back. Whatever it is you're struggling with, know that you don't have to bear it alone. Not anymore and never again."

The little Ayano sniffled too mesmerized with his words to say anything. But in the blink of an eye, her sobs intensified until she wept with everything she had and jumped into Riku's arms. He recovered from it after almost toppling over, but once he regained his footing, he wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly until she spent her tears. It was when she was only hiccuping that Riku asked, "Now, can you tell me where you really are?"

Puffy bright red eyes gazed up at him and stared for a brief second before she sniffled and nodded. Releasing her hold on him, he did the same and let her turn around to point at the golden water fountain. Carefully placing her behind him, Riku summoned his keyblade and slashed cleanly across surprising Akio at uncovering what laid behind an illusory pane of glass.

Held up against the fountain with black and cyan vines was an unconscious Ayano—the real one. With another swipe, the vines crumbled into dark ashes that flew into the air and released Ayano from their hold. Riku was quick to catch her against him, his knee bending somewhat from the added weight, but he managed to hold her steady as he stepped halfway back to the girl. Her body, like the rabbit and snake from before, began to flicker and lose its shape. As it did, a genuine smile came to her lips and in a flash, the illusion broke into flecks of white that floated into the air like bubbles and faded.

Once in the clear, Akio and Aurelius hurried to their side as Riku dispelled his keyblade to better hold Ayano. "Is she okay?" Akio asked at reaching him.

Aurelius flew over to the two of them and pestered her with his tail in an attempt to wake her. Riku was about to get him to stop until he noticed that it was actually working when he heard her groan slightly. Her eyelids fluttered before slowly opening and letting blue speckled gold eyes meet with his.

"...Riku?"

"Hey," he whispered, a smile tugging at one corner of his lips.

Blinking a few more times to clear her blurry vision, Ayano spotted Aurelius as he frantically flauntered himself for her to notice him. Riku let her find her footing first before she had a chance to reach out to Aurelius who flew right into her hands. Seeing movement beside her, she turned to find Akio there visibly relieved to see her.

All this made her brow knit together in confusion and she turned to Riku to say, "What happened to me?"

"Don't know," Akio replied and sighed defeatedly. "And frankly, so long as it never happens again, I do not care."

Riku nodded and released his hold on her waist when she told him she was fine to walk. "Agreed."

"I'll be the one to disagree then." All heads spun about as Teobaldo's voice echoed once more through the whole of the district. "Rescuing her was a meaningless thing to do, frankly. You're only delaying the inevitable. Regardless of that, though, allow me to reward your hard efforts!"

A portal opened again before them and caused both Akio and Riku to rush Ayano back with them to distance themselves from it. Like before, the portal that appeared made of swirls of black and purple changed into one of dark blue and cyan hues. Claws of long silver blades pried the sides wide open and emerged from within the portal, smashing the ground beneath it as it loomed out of the portal. Slow, methodically, it dragged its claws as it prowled towards them. It stopped once fully out and brought its claws up to throw them back as it stood on its hind legs to let out a loud howl.

"Iron Shredder—my lovely Night Terror—will be my gift to you all. Mostly, though, take it as a message for you, Ayano, my dear." Through Teobaldo's speech, Iron Shredder grinded its blades against the granite floor beneath it, the horrendous screech echoing through and its impatience growing. "To you and the rest of those set to replace us, Night Terrors will be your hunters—they will purge the purgers. You and all those so-called Rescuers are all targets. The fate from before will repeat and this time... _I'll_ finish what _you_ started."

Iron Shredder went rampant the instant Teobaldo finished talking. Taken by surprise by it's speed, Riku and Akio couldn't arm themselves fast enough and were thrown to the side, the back end of blades slashing at them and leaving Ayano alone. Blades lifted and glinted in the neon lights of the Third District but as they were about to strike her down, Aury in his Ryu Dragon form assaulted the Night Terror from the side and hurled it away from her.

Frozen from the shock, Ayano couldn't move until Riku shouted at her. "Ayano, run!" Her eyes suddenly dilated and in the frenzy of adrenaline, she bolted from the district and through the doors out of it.

There wasn't any time to think of where she was going, only that she needed to get away. That urge only became more dire when the hellish screeching from blades dragging against the asphalt started to pursue her. And it was gaining on her fast. She needed to hide. At spotting the nearest mouth of an alleyway, Ayano scurried over and went in without a second thought. It was a narrow but she somehow managed to squeeze in and turned towards the mouth of it. Ayano held her mouth closed with her hands, doing her best to keep quiet as the hellish sound of those blades scraping the floor came back again, this time near the alley. The briefest of silences enveloped her until it was broken by her scream as Iron Shredder reached through the narrow alley with its long blades grazing her shoulder.

A loud roar came from the outside and in a flash of gold, Aury took its arm in a ferocious bite and tackled it away from the alleyway. Thanking him under her breath, she squeezed out of it and spared a brief glance behind her to the animalistic struggle between them before sprinting in the opposite direction and holding onto her wounded arm.

But as she dashed away, a certain noise drifted through the air that she barely caught. It was faint and very distorted but Ayano could make out a voice and more importantly what it was saying.

" _...elp...me—St…p—e."_ Stopping and turning behind her again, Ayano watched Iron Shredder toss Aurelius aside making him transform back to his golden ball form; it howl into the air once more after their fight. This time, aside from the howl, Ayano heard the voice stronger and clearer. _"Help….Stop—me"_

"Ayano!" Catching up to her, Riku stopped beside her with Akio doing the same as the Night Terror sprinted towards them. "We've gotta get you away from it."

"No," she called. Her adrenaline driving her, she unsheathed Ares and stabbed the end onto the floor. Her Fire spells might be her best magic but ice wasn't that far off either. Conjuring Blizzaga against the floor, it erupted into a larger hailstone that rose higher than the buildings there making a grand wall of ice separating them. Giving themselves that reprieve, Ayano let out a whistle which Aury heard and chased after them as she led Riku and Akio away towards the Fountain Plaza.

"We're not running away this time."

If it wanted her, it was going to get her. But not without a fight.

* * *

" _Master, no matter how much I calculate this there doesn't seem to be any good outcome."_

 _Believe me, I know how crazy I sound but I can't just help think that this is what I'm meant to do._

Riku and Akio hadn't been any happier with my idea but I'm glad I somehow managed to convince them at least. They had already left my side prepared to intervene if things got too out of hand. By the time I reached the Fountain Plaza, the scraping noise of Iron Shredder's blades on the floor were getting louder and louder as it got closer and closer to where I was. The louder and closer it got, the more that gash on my arm throbbed—the one it made on me back in the alleyway. But right now wasn't the time to care about a scratch.

When Iron Shredder finally arrived, it perched itself on the side of the high fountain and howled. I shuddered at the sound but stood my ground and took in a deep breath before shouting, "I hear you! I know you're there, whoever you are!" The Night Terror's head tilted briefly before it leaped down and crushed the ground beneath it with the hit from its blades. It prowls towards me—a predator locked on its pray—but its head twitches in a way it hadn't before. _Not until I talked to it._

Though terrified to my core, I held my ground and spoke as clearly as my fear let me. "I know you're there. I'm not afraid of you, and I'm not running away from you anymore. If you want me— I'm here! Come get me."

Iron Shredder reached me by the time I finished talking and tilted it's head fully to one side almost like it was inspecting me. One of its clawed hands stretched out but didn't attack me, instead it briefly stopped at my face. The blades move slowly to one side moving tresses of my hair with it and lifting them on the flat side of the blade. My breath suddenly hitched at the unintelligible gurgling that came from it.

"— **ma—"** The dark mist that escaped from its unhinged jaw slowly traveled towards me and though it was scentless, I felt it suffocating me slowly. Like a thick fog made of something I couldn't describe leaked and started messing with my head making me dizzy and my vision spotty. Despite this, though, I manage to hold onto my conscious enough to reach my hand up to its own. It flinches slightly at seeing me do this and though I want to do the same, I refrain and touch it's chest. It's damp and hard, like a rock weathered out at sea, and so very cold. But beneath all that I feel it, the faintest beating of a heart. It gurgles again and this time I understand what it says. **"...E—Em—Emma."**

Though blurrier and harder to breath by the second, I ignore the blur behind Iron Shredder that brandished his keyblade and broke through the Night Terror's body in one hit like I hope it would. The darkness that was its shell, after being sliced right down the middle, breaks in half and falls off in pieces leaving behind only what was inside—a body, a person.

With how blurry my vision is though, I can't make out much except a faint hue of pink and white. Whatever had been leaking from Iron Shredder took its toll on me then and left me weaker than before. But when I fall forward, too weak to keep standing, warmth envelopes me along with the scent of flowers— _roses._

"That's not...my name." My voice is faint but with how close I am to them, I know they can hear me. But I'm only able to finish what I want to say before I black out. "I'm...Aya…"

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _It's been a little while since I last updated (-w- u) Pardon the tardiness but this took a while to write with how busy I've been with other stuff including some oneshots. But it's here! A bit of things happened this time around but very slowly. This two part visit to Traverse Town will be a slow ride since things will be picking up after that._

 _I've gotta thank **Antex** and **Aviantei** for their reviews! You guys keep me alive so thank you a million times over TwT _

_Anyway, hope you guys enjoyed! Next time, a meeting with a warrior of old and the lore of the Rescuers/Purgers continues :D For now thank you for reading, hope you enjoyed, and stay tuned for the next chapter ;)_


	11. Memoir XI: Blind Faith

**Memoir XI:**

 _Blind Faith_

* * *

Nobody moved. Nobody spoke. Nobody breathed.

The tension that came across got cut when Riku spliced the Night Terror in two, the double skin it seemingly possessed falling and breaking out in a flurry of golden light. Ayano fell through somehow unconscious upon that flurry making it spread out like weightless flakes and into the arms of what had been enveloped in that dark cocoon.

No, not what—who.

Both Akio and Riku ran up to the figure that became visible as the light dissipated and the first thing they saw were arms lovingly cradling their friend to an older woman's bosom. The somewhat tall woman sat back on her legs and the dress she wore pooled around her, glistening like pearls under the neon lights. It was in that shimmering white where Ayano rested, her body cradled onto the woman's lap and her arms wrapped around her as Aya's head laid on her shoulder. The woman's pale hand came up and stroke away strands of blonde hair away from Ayano's sleeping face before reaching up and doing the same to her, brushing back long locks of a peach hue. With her face now fully visible, they watched her closely as charcoal eyes just fixated on Ayano. Their gaze full to the brim with so much tenderness and even much more melancholy. A flash of gold flew from Akio's side as Aurelius made its way to nestle itself on Ayano's lap.

The woman's hand patted him briefly before it returned to soothingly stroke Ayano's head. She lifted hers then to turn to the two boys that stopped in their tracks not daring to approach another inch. Soft lips upturned into a forlorn smile and then said with a soft voice, "Thank you."

Akio's brow furrowed at hearing those words and couldn't keep his thoughts to himself. "Why are you thanking us?"

Black eyes turned from Akio to Riku taking in every bit of them with her gaze before replying. "You're the boy with the keyblade?"

"...yes." Neither were sure what she could possible want with that information, much less do with it.

With a bow of her head, she lifted it to display a smile much less despondent than before. "Then I have you to thank truly. You released me from what I became and saved her from falling to the same fate." Her gaze turned back Ayano and held her closer to brush her fingers across her face. "And also, I have to thank you for letting me see Emma again." Suddenly her caresses stopped and her smile fell once more. "No... She's not our little one. But she's good all the same."

"Who are you exactly?" Riku asked, daring to close the distance between them. When she didn't seem to mind it, Akio followed in his footsteps and watched from an okay distance as the woman spoke.

"If it is my name you're after, then I was known as Cordelia once."

Akio stepped up further this time closing the gap even more. "You said he 'released you from what you became'. What did you mean by that? Was Iron Shredder a prison?"

Cordelia gave a slow nod before turning to face them, her dark eyes set on both without needing to look at either. "Teobaldo's doing."

"Teobaldo," Riku repeated. "He's the one that sent you after Aya. Who is he exactly?"

"An old comrade of ours." The sudden click of her tongue and subsequent scowl turned her quiet beauty into a terrifying sight. "A traitor—he turned his back on our cause and sought to destroy us. But it proved a much more difficult task than he anticipated."

"How so?" Akio asked.

"What he wishes to destroy is our duty, that which we swore to uphold and who we swore to protect. Our mission is intangible; he could not simply destroy us and bereft the worlds of it. Even with us gone, it lives on in those who succeed us. Teobaldo knows this." Her demeanor changed yet again to a much more caring facade as she held Ayano's unconscious body closer to her; almost seeming like a loving mother whose child had been taken from her for far too long. "Which is why he's after our little one's successor."

"So she's...one of you. Whatever you guys are." Akio didn't care about being tactful even after seeing how Cordelia's mood changed at the drop of a hat. Cordelia nodded again just as lethargic as before. "Then if he's after her, how do we get him off of her back?"

"That's not something in the realm of possibility." That she cut short that route soured both boys' moods and it only got worse the more she explained why. "I saw them, her eyes—she's already accepted her role and the heavy burden she is to carry with it."

"She only did so recently, though," Riku disputed. He was adamant on finding a way to finally find Aya the peace she deserved after what she'd gone through. "Those eyes of hers that lie, can't she just rid herself of them?"

"That she has them means a pact has already been made," Cordelia explained. "And it can't be broken once done. She took her reward and now she must fulfill her end of the bargain. Just as we did."

That didn't really answer much to Akio's chagrin. So Teobaldo wanted Ayano because she was one of the Rescuers' successor. Fine. He could swallow that. What he couldn't despite how many names had been thrown everywhere was what in the hell a Rescuer even was. To his credit, he didn't waste time waiting and asked her straight out.

"If we can't stop him, that's fine. We'll deal with him then. But if we're going to do that then we're going to need to know why exactly she's being targeted." He strode forward fully standing a few feet away from Cordelia and the slumbering Ayano with Riku's footsteps following behind. "I'm sure you want her safe."

Cordelia's hold on Ayano tightened. "More than anything."

"Then tell us," Riku added, grabbing onto the situation faster than Akio thought he would. "Tell us what exactly it is we're up against and what you are. And what exactly did Aya inherit from you."

Her charcoal gaze fell onto Ayano, her chest rising and falling peacefully, before lifting it to meet theirs again. "A long time ago during the time that I lived, there were countless of Keyblade wielders just like you. They fought alongside their comrades in order to safeguard the light from the darkness that began to spread throughout the worlds. Soon enough though, the different factions fought each other for the light they sought to protect and some lost their way within so much anger and greed."

"They fell to the darkness," Riku surmised.

"Some did, yes. Those who turned could be cleansed easily by other wielders, though. It had been done before and it was a task some of them took to doing," Cordelia continued swiftly. "But there were those who began to disappear in the dead of the night by a darkness unseen to them yet all the more dangerous than anything they had ever encountered."

"Wait a minute," Akio told her while holding tightly to his closed fist. "What, you mean there's something worse than just the darkness that turns people into Heartless and that taints Spirits?"

"Yes." Her reply came without any hesitation and it troubled both of them greatly. "We called it Abysmal—from the tales, it began as any other dark manifestation. It dragged people into it, enticing them and taking their hearts away. It attacked at random just as the others until it took one of ours, a keyblade wielder. First one, then another and another and another. The disappearances grew exponentially unlike anything we had seen before and it was then that we realized it had developed a taste for us. As it began to hunt us, we hunted it in kind. But what we were too slow to realize was that it grew a will and mind of its own after devouring so many wielders over the eras. It feasts on wielders and those loved by the light, and those who manage to escape its grasp don't do so untouched. Whether infected or taken, they all succumbed to it one way or another unless we freed them."

Her pale fingers lowered from Ayano's face to her shoulder where the scratch that Iron Shredder made wasn't bleeding red but black. And from that black wound, dark fumes rose into nothing. A smile came to Cordelia and she turned to Akio as the wisps of black smoke wrapped around her fingers like tiny claws before whisking away. "But you knew that already, didn't you?"

The hold on his fist tightened at her condemning words. A part of Akio didn't want to believe what she told them. He hadn't the first time when he read about it just like he didn't want to now. But that Cordelia, someone who literally became a prisoner of this abysmal darkness, told them it was, his doubts grew greatly. The black smoke coming from Ayano's wound only made him face reality faster.

 _There's just one thing I need to know._

"You took me there…to those ruins." He stopped briefly wanting to choose his words carefully before continuing. "Why me?"

Soft lips parted to reply but before she could, Ayano started writhing in her hold, her expression somewhat contorted in pain. "It's hard to say. Much of my memory became distorted from turning into that Nightmare. All I can recall is that I guided you there because it was necessary."

The vague explanation barely answered his question and certainly led to many more. Just as he was about to ask them, though, Riku's sudden gasp took his attention. Akio followed his line of sight and frowned at the transparency of her arms and legs. Noticing the looks they gave her, Cordelia spared her own body a glance before the corner of her lips lifted knowingly.

"It is fine," she assured them. "I ceased to exist in any world a long time ago. The only reason why I could be for this long was because of the body Teobaldo created in order for me to exist as Iron Shredder." With a long sigh through her nose, Cordelia turned to look at Riku and held out her arms with Ayano in them. It took him a second to realize what she was doing before he trotted up to take Ayano from her disappearing hold with Aurelius then flying from her lap to rest on top of his head. His teal eyes darted from the wound on Ayano's shoulder to her pained expression and prompted Cordelia to say, "Rest assured, child. Her infection can be healed. And it won't infect those like you who are immune to darkness." Her dark eyes turned to Akio. "Nor those protected from it."

Adjusting to hold her in his arms better, Riku turned to Cordelia with a nod. "Thank you for telling us this."

With a gentle smile and a bow of her head, the transparency that started on her limbs spread further and further across her body. What had been translucent turned to flecks of light that hovered in the air before completely disappearing.

Not wanting to be left with so many questions in his mind, Akio stepped forward and kneeled before her so she could hear him better. "Miss Cordelia, you referred to yourself as one of the Rescuers. Tell me, what was your given name?"

"My given name…" Her voice sounded more distant now that most of her body was gone. What was left of her body glimmered gold and she lifted her head to reply to him before completely turning into stardust. "The epithet given to me by my master was _Misericordia_ , the merciful one."

Her entire body faded with her voice and the golden flecks disappeared into the air until nothing was left of her. Akio watched her vanish completely and turned to Riku who gazed after the golden flecks as well. Their eyes met for a brief moment before Akio lowered his head with a deep sigh.

"We should get her to somewhere she can rest and where I can rid her of the infection."

* * *

Riku remembered there being a hotel in the Second District and fortunately, they found a vacant room where they let Ayano rest on the only bed in the room. The way her brows knitted in pain even as she slept did concern him but it didn't seem to worry Akio much. Said boy stood to the side of his room removing the long coat he wore, parts of it singed or torn from the fight with Ayano and Iron Shredder.

"Is she conscious?" Akio asked as he took out the gourd tied to his belt.

Riku checked her one more time just in case. Aside from the pain on her face, the wound on her shoulder, and her slightly heavy breathing, everything else appeared normal. Well, beside the tiny winged ball that rested next to her bed with its tailed wrapped around her neck that was. "No."

"Good. It'll be better that way." Those words worried Riku but that turned to caution when Akio strode over to Ayano's bedside with a basin of water and clean rag.

"What're you going to do with that?"

Akio set the basin and rag aside on the bedside table before turning to Riku. "Clean her wound."

"With simple water? Isn't it infected with that darkness Cordelia told us about?"

"It's _not_ simple water." Akio punctuated his words well as he took a chair closer to the the bed. Diligently, he dipped and wrung the rag until it was just damp enough. "It's purified water from a spring where I live at. I've seen it treat darkness when it's not innate like this."

Though he wanted to argue further and find out how exactly it did that, Riku held the hope that it could at least help Aya. So he kept quiet and watched instead as Akio carefully cleaned away at the wound. The black liquid that came from the wound smeared the rag a black and gray color, the smoke coming from it only lingering for a few moments before vanishing. With each brush against the wound, Ayano's brow furrowed further but her breathing did start evening out eventually. Soon enough the rag became too dirtied and Akio sunk it back into the water. As he did that, Riku finally understood why that water wasn't normal. The dirtied rag floated in the basin, letting the black mire separate from the cloth and into the water. The ebony color in the water lasted only a second though, before sizzling and turning clear again.

Wide-eyed, Riku couldn't help his amazement at what he'd seen. "It's...gone."

"Told you." Akio took the clean rag and wrung it before going back to cleaning Ayano's wound. As he did so, Aurelius patted one of his wings on her forehead, seemingly to soothe her. "It'll only work for a couple more times, though. Fortunately, her wound isn't too large so this much will be enough to disinfect it."

Silence came over them as he continued to attend to her wound. All the while, Riku stared at them from where he stood at the foot of the bed, arms crossed over his chest pensively. There was no way that all this had been part of the test Yen Sid gave them. Though she never said anything when they first crossed paths in Traverse Town, Riku suspected that Aya was there for a whole other reason than his. Never something to this scale though. Most of what Cordelia had told them didn't ring the slightest of bells in his head but if he was sure of anything, it was that the boy treating her knew more than he let on.

"If you have something to ask, then ask." Riku stiffened at being called out like that. Simply sparing him a glance, Akio measured him briefly for a response before going back to what he was doing. "I know I'm suspicious because of all that I've been spewing anyway. And I guess after everything that's happened, I owe some kind of explanation."

"What do you know about the Rescuers and how did you know about Cordelia's other name?"

Giving himself time to muster a proper reply, Akio busied himself with checking the injury. He remained quiet while bandaging Ayano's upper arm and after he was done, laid it to rest beside her. Seeing that her expression was much calmer compared to before, he sat back to rest himself. Aurelius, knowing she was treated, unwound itself from her neck and flew over to Akio's lap. His eyes lingered on the Spirit and he scoffed at the apparent gratitude from it as it patted Akio's hand with its tail. Petting it himself, he continued with the motion for a minute before looking up to Riku.

"I come from a little world called Radiant Garden."

"You're from Radiant Garden?"

Akio's brow knitted together in confusion. "You know about it?"

All Riku could do was nod. "I knew it as Hollow Bastion. It only recently took back the name of Radiant Garden after the restoration committee there rid it of Heartless."

Akio's head lowered and he leaned forward, resting his arms on his lap and taking a deep breath through his nose. Aury flew out of the way and nested on the table instead, wrapping its tail around itself. "That's good to hear, I suppose."

"You said you lived there?"

"It was my homeworld though I haven't been there in many years." He waved a dismissive hand at Riku before leaning back against the chair he sat on. "It got swallowed by the darkness back when I was smaller. Technically speaking, my affliction shouldn't have allowed me to survive that."

"What exactly are you ill with?"

Mercurial eyes went askance at the question and landed on his own hand as he flexed it over and over again. As he opened his fist again, a dark energy enveloped his palm like a translucent, dark ember licking at his skin. It danced in the light of the room for a bit before standing still like a burning flame. As if threatened, Aury's mouth slit open, serrated teeth baring at the flame and an odd hiss escaped him.

After seeing it, there wasn't a need for Akio to tell him what it was. "Darkness?"

"Never had a name for it before but after what Cordelia told us, I'm pretty sure it's that nasty one she talked about." Akio lifted his hand, the embers licking calmly before trying to spread further along his arm. Seeing that, he quickly dispersed it and let the embers die on themselves with some help from Aury's wing whacking it a couple of times for good measure. "Ever since I was born, I've had this weakness to darkness that afflicts me. It's something passed down through my family, I was told. Guess that made it easier for the Abysmal to infect me."

Something didn't quite sound right to Riku though. "But Cordelia said that it devours those it infects. How are you still alive?"

Akio reached beneath his shirt and took out the oddly shaped necklace that hid there. "It's a charm made of a special light crystal. Lux, according to what I read. I found some of it where I lived after Radiant Garden disappeared and made this when I was smaller. It's nothing but a reservoir of light; it keeps the infection from spreading and consuming me."

"Where you lived after Radiant Garden…" Riku thought about that briefly before asking, "You said that Cordelia guided you to some ruins. Is that where you found the Lux?"

He nodded while putting the necklace away underneath his clothes. "After drifting through nothingness after it disappeared, I heard a voice in the void. It was kind and gentle—it took me a minute to recognize Cordelia's voice when she first spoke but there's no mistaking that it was her. Even if she didn't remember me." Taking a deep breath again, he leaned his head back over the chair's back and let it hang as he mindlessly watched the ceiling above them. "It led me to the ruins—a temple or sanctuary of some kind, actually. Time certainly took its toll on it though. I explored every nook and cranny I could of that place during the years I lived there."

Surmising this would be a long conversation, Riku took a seat on the extra chair near the table and kept his eye on Ayano who soundly slept, lips slightly parted. Akio saw this and brought his chair closer to the table where they could talk properly.

"What did you find?"

"Decrepit libraries, most of the books and tomes there were rotten and unreadable with even fewer that I could actually read. But what I found much more interesting were the images."

"Images?" Riku repeated.

"On murals. They're on every wall in the grandest room of the sanctuary." Akio rapped his fingers on the table as if trying to find words to describe what he saw. "It took time to decipher what they were about, but I somehow managed to after cross checking with the few books I could. They tell the story of an ancient war fought long ago where five factions coveted the light of the worlds. Among these warriors, there existed five charged by their masters with saving those who lost themselves to an unnamed darkness regardless of faction."

There were no names but Riku instantly recognized that story. "It's what Cordelia was telling us about."

Akio placed an elbow on the table and leaned his chin in his palm. "I thought the same thing the whole time she was telling us that. Which means that the 'unnamed darkness' depicted on the murals and written on the tomes is the abysmal darkness Cordelia described."

"What else did it say about the Rescuers?"

His mercurial eyes lingered on Riku at how quick he was at catching up but didn't mind it. It certainly made things run smoother if they both were on the same page. "It said that those five warriors possessed distinct powers that aided them in their rescues. It also had their given titles and what they were known for in their faction." Akio tallied a finger with each name he told Riku. "The cunning snake, Carissus. The loyal leopard, Adcredo. The innocent fox, Sinceris. The courageous bear, Audacia. And the merciful unicorn, Misericordia."

At recognizing the last name, Riku lowered his gaze to the table and delved into his own thoughts. "So even if Cordelia was her name, her title was another. That means, if Teobaldo was a comrade of hers like she said, then one of those... Do you think he was a Rescuer?"

"If he was or not isn't what bothers me," Akio added. "What does is what him being her old comrade implies about how long he's been alive." He dismissed that thought away with a shake of his head, "Then again, that pales in comparison when considering that whatever Cordelia and Teobaldo were and the burden Cordelia talked about now falls on Ayano's shoulders."

"It doesn't matter what that lady said or what I'm supposedly meant to do, I'm still going to do what I want to regardless."

Both boys and Spirit rose from their sits in a hurry at hearing Ayano and turned to her as she sat up from the bed. While the two of them worried over her like hens, the only one that waited patiently was the Dream Eater that settled beside her. It wasn't until she heard Riku ask how she knew what they'd been talking about that she minded them. She waved that off and slowly came over to the edge of the bed to seat there. Akio tried to help her up but she slapped his hands away playfully before turning to him with her nose scrunched up in slight annoyance.

"Stop henning over me, I'm fine." While they tried calming down, Ayano spared glances to her wounds before her eyes wandered to her clothes. She grimaced at the mere sight of them so tattered; her skirt and jacket singed and torn, ravaged after the fight and escape from Iron Shredder. Raising her arm, she eyed the bandage around it and grimaced at the sting coming from it.

Ayano lifted her gaze then onto Akio who looked just as worse for wear as she did. Without the signature coat she'd seen him in, he looked less imposing and much more amiable. But even those clothes beneath him suffered damages and his coat—that thing got frayed through and through.

"That thing...it did a number on us, didn't it?"

"Not just her," Riku rectified. The added comment perplexed Ayano which prompted Riku and Akio to tell her what happened before Iron Shredder; how she had attacked them under something else's control. It seemed to wrack something in her brain as her brow furrowed further pensively, a hand kneading the side of her temple.

"I don't remember that. But I think I remember...something before. " Ayano mumbled to herself in an attempt to retrieve the blurry information from her brain. Hazel blue eyes focused on nothing for a while until she mustered an idea of what she witnessed. "I chased a bunny child into an alley but...it wasn't real. Something... _that_ thing at the dead end—it's eyes were so bright. And blue."

"Blue?" Akio repeated.

She nodded and turned to gaze at him. "Like that neon blue from the squirrel."

"Squirrel?" Riku asked, puzzled by the seemingly innocent description.

"Another Night Terror we encountered." Letting out a lengthy sigh, Akio leaned back slightly against the chair where he'd hung his coat. "And by the looks of it, more of them waited here for us. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that it was one of them that tore us apart last time either."

Agreeing, she gave one slow nod but her attention had already wandered back to his torn coat. She stood up and walked up to the chair after checking her balance and took it in her hands, crumpling the fabric in her grasp.

Just as the two were going to ask what was wrong, she turned to Akio and smiled before heading for the door. Their inquiring shouts came after her but she didn't listen and instead searched for the nearest stores. Though quite deserted, the shops were still selling and she turned just as Akio and Riku exited the hotel after her.

"Where are you even going to?" Riku asked.

Ayano didn't bother replying though, and instead folded the coat as well as she could before motioning with a nod of her head towards the shops. "To get some upgrades."

* * *

I'm thankful to Riku and Akio who manage to sit peacefully while I work my magic on the fabric and items we bought for cheap from the Moogles. Damn creatures will give anything if they smell munny. Fortunately, despite how vacant the place was, we managed to find most of the things that I needed to come up with something for us.

Akio did bother from time to time, telling me there wasn't a need to mend our clothes or get new ones. I deeply disagreed. "We have to be ready. If what we're up against are those things—Night Terrors, you said they're called?—well, I think we need to be better equipped."

He scoffs and doesn't bother taking his eyes away from the dangling Spirit that is Aury as he hangs from Akio's outstretched hand, swaying back and forth apparently enjoying the ride a lot. "Don't know how new a wardrobe will help."

"It does depending on what it's made of." Riku's comment did garner some of Akio's attention but only a sidelong glance and a very brief one at that. As he continues his explanation, I nod along with him. "Like that scarf of hers, for example. It lowers the effect of magic with an emphasis on fire."

"I get what magically enhanced clothes do," he says with a mildly annoyed tone to his voice. He nods towards me as I hold his coat in my hands and grimaces at my snipping away at it with scissors. "What I don't get is why she has to dismantle my favorite and _only_ coat."

"Because, you huge crybaby—" My eyes stray away from the coat and to him. Keeping eye contact with him, I pull apart the coat along the tear I made with no hesitation. A wide, smug grin comes to me at how disgusted and annoyed he is from what I'm doing. "Not only is it shredded, it's an abomination."

"Excuse me?"

"Did I stutter?"

"Stop fighting and focus," Riku reminds me. With a shrug of my shoulders and a humph from Akio, I go back to his coat and tear it further to his chagrin before going onto sewing what I need to. "While you do that, I have to ask: how do you expect to keep on searching for that darkness of yours with what's hunting you down now?"

My gaze goes askance towards Riku, trying to decipher how and when he heard about that. From what I know, Yen Sid didn't tell either him or Sora. For all they knew when they saw me those few times before, I'm just strolling around doing my own thing. Which I am, but one that shouldn't be any of their business.

"Monsters hunting us down isn't anything new. It's part of the job description, really. So I'll manage."

" _It would be easier to deal with these new threats with outside help, master."_

 _I don't want to involve them._ The last thing I want is for them to suffer because of me. I came out here searching on my own, and by damn will I finish it that way.

It took me less time to fix his coat that I thought at first. I tossed much of it out to his annoyance and instead made what was left into the lining of his new jacket; had to sew one of the red clouds from his old one though with him not shutting up about it and all. The gray long-sleeve he's wearing isn't as horrid as his coat was, so I spare it any changes, but his pants are just...no.

Thank goodness I had enough munny to buy different things.

"Done," I mumble as I lift the new piece before me to check for any stray threads. When I verify that there isn't any, I toss it haphazardly at Akio making him squawk out in surprise as he drops Aury to catch it. The little Spirit just flutters its wings and goes to dig itself a little cozy, clothes cavern to sleep on. The sound is so not him and I scoff while he curses a bit under his breath. "Here," I tell him so that he can calm down. Rummaging through the different pairs we bought, I finally zero down on a dark maroon pair of pants that I push into his hands before urging him up and towards the bathroom. "Go change into that."

"Why the hell am I getting pants too?"

"'Cause they're fire resistant and you don't look dumb in them. Now stop asking stupid questions and go!" He struggles plenty but by the time we get to the bathroom door, I manage to kick him inside and close the door behind him. "Also shower while you're at it! You stink!" He blows a gasket at that but chills after a few minutes of mindless shouting. Once I'm sure he won't barge out and kick the shit out of me, I return to the rest of the clothes to choose some for myself.

It's once the noise of running water comes through that Riku comes to the bed and sits at the edge before speaking quietly.

"I'm surprised you're accompanied."

"Unwillingly." His expression changes, brows furrowing from the confusion, and it prompts me to raise my arm and show him the wrist where my golden bracelet is on. It takes me no time to explain to him what exactly that is and why we're traveling together. "At least it started out like that," I tell him as I debate between two blouses. Picking the white long sleeve with a slight v-neck collar, I set it aside to look at the jackets we got.

"What changed?"

"I guess how I looked at him did."

That doesn't seem to sit well with him. "Do you trust him?"

I'm tempted to lie. I'm tempted to say that I don't but that's not the truth. At least not anymore.

"More than when we first met," I admit, rubbing at my eyes as if fearing that the burning sensation, the telltale of my lies, is there. But it's not. "Who knows, maybe a little more than I should now. He's not so bad, though. Hard around the edges, yes, but I've seen and learned things about him—the ones that made him how he is now. And, well, to be frank...he reminds me of myself a little."

 _A lot._ If anything, I think that if he were hiding something, I could figure out why and reach the piece of him that was good and nurture it. There's no way to explain it; I just feel that if given the chance, I could bring back the essence of that little boy from his memories. The one that's showing itself more and more with each passing day.

Riku shakes his head and that throws me back somewhat. "I know what you're thinking and I'll tell you right now, don't try to fix him."

"Fix him?" My tone goes up a pitch, insulted.

"I don't blame you for thinking you can." He sighs and rubs at the back of his neck. "You helped Haruka before and changed him from the jaded boy he used to be. You even helped me back when we met in Hollow Bastion under Maleficent and through Sora's slumber and awakening not long ago. But just because you helped us, it doesn't mean you can help everybody."

Furious at the reminder, I toss the jacket I had in my hands and groan. "I'm not an idiot, Riku. I know that well."

 _But I can't seem to ever fully embrace it._

If I could, I don't think I would be so miserable still about losing those others important to me. Axel, Roxas, and X— The sudden pounding that hits the side of my head makes me flinch and Riku shoots out of his seat to steady me by holding onto my shoulder. "You alright?"

"Y-Yeah." With a shake of my head, I wait until the pounding leaves before I look down at the clothes I spread over the bed. Only two pairs of pants catch my eye and I pick up the slightly beige ones cropped at the ankles. They look like a fitted pair but that the fabric stretches puts me somewhat at ease. "But like I said, I don't intend to fix him. Perhaps I'm a little more hopeful than I should be but it's with good reason. I've learned that sometimes all we really have to do to bring the good out of others is believe in them."

That I say this makes Riku scoff and he shakes his head again, this time out of defeat. "Sora rubbed off on you, huh?"

"No, he didn't—" But giving it the slightest bit of thought proves his words right. I chuckle at realizing this before giving him a sidelong glance, the corner of my lips upturned slightly into a grin. "Goodness, you're right. Is it that bad?"

"It's never a bad thing," he reassures me. And that, surprisingly, does get me to smile and feel more at ease with my decision. When the water turns off and the noise quiets, Riku's smile falters a little. "Just...be careful. Alright?"

I only get to nod curtly before the door to the bathroom opens. Riku gazes back to the bed and after eyeing the two jackets I set aside, he picks one and gives it to me. "This one's more your color."

"I thought red was my color," I reply, my nose scrunching at his comment.

"Gold is more."

"Alright, I put on your lousy ass outfit." Both Riku and I turn to Akio as he comes out with a towel over his head as he dries it off. His mercurial eyes glance up from beneath wet lashes and brandishes his arms out to show me. "So just get it over with and tell me how stupid I look. That way I'll have time to let it settle before we leave."

"I would say that but...you actually don't look half bad."

I wasn't being generous either. He truly hid himself well under that hideous coat all this time. Without it, he actually looks, well, handsome for one. The maroon pants fitted him well and were only a shade darker than his hair. I got him to exchange his sandals too with some actual shoes that hopefully would withstand the use of his powers. He kept his grey shirt, his sleeves rolled back to his elbows, and the fingerless gloves as well. But what impressed me most was my masterpiece and just how well it suited him. Instead of a long coat, I turned it into a sleeveless jacket that was well fitted to his physique. The red cloud that I salvaged from the old one was patched to the lower left of the new one as well. And through the somewhat high collar, the red and black lining stuck out like I wanted them too.

Everything suited him well except…

At hearing me groan, his eyebrows rose a notch from the absurdity. "What now?"

It's hard to describe, but I motion at my head brushing back my hands over it over and over. "I—how can I—it's your—ugh, give me a second." Turning away from him, I rummage through the bags of what we bought until I found what I was looking for. Without much thought, I go up to him and take away the towel over his head and toss it over a chair before reaching up on my tiptoes to put the black, thin headband through his hair. The waves of hair slicken where the teeth of the headband pass through and the rest gets pushed so they fall back or to the sides. Only some short strands escape by the way they curl around his face and give him a boyish charm that I hadn't noticed before. "There. Now I can see your eyes properly." Grinning from ear to ear as he reaches up to touch the headband with wide eyes is satisfying enough.

Akio hangs his head for a brief moment while taking a deep breath before lifting his gaze to meet mine. I don't know if it's my eyes playing tricks on me but I think I see a dark color similar to his hair tint the top of his ears before he turns towards the door.

"Where're you headed?"

"Out to get some supplies we actually need."

"Oh. Alright then. I should be done by then too," I tell him as he opens the door to leave. "Be careful, alright?"

The way he looks over his shoulder doesn't let me see his face but he doesn't last long like that before he throws up a hand to wave in agreement. The door closes after him and with it being only Riku and I, I go and take the clothes we picked before going to the bathroom to shower myself.

* * *

"It was here?"

"Yep," Akio tells me, adjusting the headband on his head for the umpteenth time since we left the hotel. "It disappeared after Iron Shredder locked it somehow with its claws."

A hum escapes me as I look around the Third District for any clues as to what exactly could be hindering the keyhole from appearing now. There wouldn't be a problem opening it with Riku's keyblade, but first we'd have to find the damn thing. As I go around searching separately from the other two, I tighten the knot of my scarf that's now tied around my waist with a small bow behind me.

It's somewhat regrettable that I had to rid myself of the clothes Yen Sid prepared but seeing the circumstances, I think he'll let me get away with it. The long sleeve shirt and ankle-cropped pants are comfortable enough, and the dark brown bodice that cuts straight across over my chest keeps everything together well. My belt from before keeps my pouch and North's as well at the left of me while Ares rests in its holster that's strapped to my right thigh. The pastel yellow, knee-length swing coat Riku chose for me is sleeveless and double-breasted but I keep it open. Using the small cord it came with, I tied it back so that the lapels wouldn't flap everywhere when I moved. The collar and seams are decorated in gold embroidery that I'm starting to like by the second too. The coat from the waist down is lined with a black underskirt that ruffled the coat out. It flounces like my last one but this one at least isn't a skirt I'm dealing with. To top it off, my scarf is now a makeshift belt and it matches Haruka's ribbon that's on my ponytail still.

As I search for any sign of the disappearing keyhole, Aury follows close by but stops and stares off into the distance when I come to the upper levels of the Third District.

"Aury?" He doesn't listen. Instead, he flies over to the middle of the district before turning into a Ryu Dragon and attacking nothing in midair. Jumping down to meet the others on the ground, we stand back and watch him tear at something.

"What is it doing?" Riku asked, curious.

"I don't know—" The sudden _clunk_ of something heavy falling onto the ground not even a few feet in front of us scares the daylights out of me and both Riku and Akio pull me back not wanting to risk getting hurt either. Looking up, Aury's mauling away at something that's slowly becoming less and less invisible until the glass-like wall that had encased the keyhole falls completely apart onto the ground revealing it.

Aurelius flies back to me, turning away briefly to dry heave as if wanting to puke but thankfully doesn't. He looks at me happily like he didn't just almost choke on pieces of glass he chewed out. I offer him my shoulder which he readily takes and nestles in his usual place, wrapping his tail around my neck.

With a motion of my hand, I mock a bow to Riku while grinning. "All yours."

Thanking me, he brandishes his Keyblade but when he tries to unlock it, nothing happens. His brow furrows, bewildered, before turning back to us. "It's not working."

"Are you…" I play with my hands a bit trying to find the right words that wouldn't offend him. "Are you doing it right?" He gives me a peeved glare and I raise my hands in surrender. "Just asking!"

Beside me though, Akio seems a bit too pensive and after a moment, speaks in a quiet mumble. "Maybe..."

"What is it?" I ask.

He holds his chin in his fingers and lowers his gaze to the floor, thinking. His gaze changes between the keyhole and Aury for a few seconds before they land on me. "Your powers."

"What about them…" I say, a little cautious to why he'd be asking about them.

"Remember those murals I told you about?"

Somewhat. Even after he repeated the information he told Riku after I came out from changing, it was still somewhat hard to follow. Thanks to Rinto, I kinda got a better gist of it with her verifying much of what he said. When I tell him this, he motions out to the keyhole. "Your kind—the Rescuers?—they were able to hunt down the Abysmal because they were able to see the darkness they left in their wake. Even through opened pathways the Abysmal closed them off after devouring worlds."

"You think the Abysmal darkness is keeping the keyhole from opening?" Riku asked a tad bit incredulous.

Akio nodded vigorously and pointed at it again. "It's targeted you now. It knows you're a threat. And it's trying to keep you away."

My fore and ring finger tap my chin as I take that information in. "Makes sense. Welp! We lose nothing with trying." Taking a deep breath and letting it out as slow as I can, I call upon Rinto and my powers and instantly sense the fervent burn that comes over my eyes. They open, my vision tinted red, before I scan the area around us. Everything seems normal as can be until I set my eyes on the keyhole and what I see makes my eyebrows knit together.

The keyhole still retains its golden hue even through my eyes but what astounds me is the sight of strange looking chains wrapped around it. They aren't wound tightly around it. Instead, they hover around an invisible sphere while keeping the keyhole inside it. They rotate around it in a makeshift field and set off small crackles of dark energy. It reminds me of what Akio's powers do when they envelope his body.

"Aya?"

"What do you see?"

"Chains," I tell them and shake my head. "They're keeping the keyhole inside some cage that I can't see. It's sealed off. Literally."

"How do we break it?" Riku must've asked that of Akio because he replies swiftly thereafter.

"Aya's got to unleash it."

I blink in surprise, my powers turning off instantly, before I glance over my shoulder at him. "What do you mean I have to do it?"

He taps the side of his head near his right eye. "Your eyes, your power. They didn't just allow them to hunt down by sight. It let them break through its powers like nothing else could. You have the power to open it, ask it how."

That he remembered about Rinto only amazes me momentarily. Once that goes over me, I turn towards the keyhole again before activating my eyes once more. My world tints red and as it does, I ask Rinto under my breath. "Is he right?"

" _Yes."_

"How do I do this then?"

" _Focus. Take a deep breath and focus on what is closed off from the infection."_

Listening to her, I lead my gaze back up to the keyhole and the chains that kept it in its small prison. "Alright."

" _Don't speak. Just concentrate on what you want to release. What holds it in place are the remnants of the dark source that created it. It is nothing but a mere stain without its source now. With the tiniest bit of pressure, it will break."_

"Cut the fanciness, Rinto. Tell me how I blast them to kingdom come."

" _Force it. Concentrate on the image of them doing just that. For you who possesses the Deceiving Eyes, make the illusion reality."_

Force it; blast it to kingdom come. Blast… The word sticks and I repeat it over and over in my head as I focus on the chains and imagine them exploding into smithereens. I'm somewhat disheartened that nothing happens for a few seconds but Rinto's patient guidance calms me down enough to concentrate.

 _Explode. Explode. Explode!_

Cracks burning red start appearing on the links and around the invisible cage until it turns into a veiny bomb that explodes into shards of nothing. When it bursts, I cover my eyes with my arms and wait till the noise is over to look again. The chains are gone...and the keyhole's intact.

"...they're gone."

" _Good job, master."_

"It should work now then." Akio turns to Riku and given his cue, Riku gives it another shot. This time, a sphere of transparent light appears at the tip of his Keyblade and from it a ray of light shoots out and hits the keyhole. The soft _click_ of the lock opening is music to our ears.

Riku gives out a relieved sigh before turning to me. "Thanks."

"No problem." Putting my hands behind me, I give a nod towards the keyhole. "Guess it's time for you to keep going, huh?"

"Yeah. Still got a test to finish."

"True." I give him a curt nod. "Good luck."

"You too." His body hovers off of the ground and disappears in an array of light away to goodness knew where.

Once by ourselves, we turn upward to the keyhole as it disappears. Akio lowers his gaze to me before asking, "So? Where to now?"

"Onward," I tell him. Reaching up to Aury who's snuggled up against my neck still, I pat his head and lean over to speak to him. "Think you could take us where we were supposed to go from here, bud?"

Aurelius shakes himself and unwinds from my neck to hover before us. The slit of his mouth opens before a similar ray of light shoots out and opens a doorway of a gold color. We go through and find ourselves in the darkness of the Ring of the Fallen again. From the doorways there, one more has appeared and is nothing more than a empty frame. Aury opens his mouth and lets the small sphere of memory hover to the frame and lets a doorway open.

Above the frame, the sigil lightens and shows a pyramid made of gold.

First, I let Aury return to my shoulder and brush my fingers against his tail as it winds back around me. Turning to Akio, I offer him my arm and teasingly wink at him. "Ladies first?" He scoffs but I catch the corner of his lips lift a bit as he shoves me playfully forward. A chuckle escapes me and we walk up to the door to cross it together.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _Finally done! This one took a few days more to proofread with everything else that I had going on but it's finally out!_

 _I liked diving in on the lore of my story with these past two chapters. I've had the idea of the Rescuers and the Abysmal Darkness for years now and have been building up to since Artificial Friend (tho not well cx I'll go rewrite the whole series eventually). Now we get to meet the first the Rescuers if only briefly! For those in the know of KHUX, you can connect who was Cordelia's master. And I'll hint it now too, the title of this story is what Aya's carrying now. So guessing who she succeeded isn't all too hard either._

 _First let me thank the lovely_ _ **Antex**_ _,_ _ **oz-cocoa**_ _, and_ _ **Aviantei**_ _for the precious review! I love you guys! I know I'm super slow (sometimes even forgetful) about replying back but rest assure that I will!_

 _I'll leave things a little short this time but before I go, I want to leave ya'll with a taste of a new story I just published. It's for Boku no Hero Academia and it'll be sharing a third slot with both CoU and TM; I know some of you won't like the sound of that but it's really a story that I've been wanting to write for awhile now. And I'll do my damndest to upload in bulk or if not, do to so only a few days in between (maybe a week between stories the longest). I've been keeping a good record with splitting time two ways with those two and I want to try splitting it three ways and write something I've held back on publishing._

 _If any of ya'll aren't interested, feel free to skip through—no hard feelings—and read up on my outtro spiel with a little hint on what'll come next chapter :D_

* * *

 **"START!"**

A handful hesitated at the signal but within a second most of them sprinted into the arena for the test. Nagi didn't let herself fall behind and ran at a leveled speed while being mindful to head in any direction besides the one where everybody else went.

 _Point based means we're fighting against time and each other. Which means that the less crowded the place, the more chances I have of—_

Her train of thought and strut came to a screeching halt when at exiting an alleyway a one-pointer robot skidded from the adjacent road, leaving burn marks on the street and a stream of smoke from its burnt tires. A metallic head with an eye-camera swiveled around before honing down on her; the eye turned from black to red and a robotic voice came from it.

"Target acquired."

"Hey there," she called out, her tone enthused as she grinned at her luck. Not missing a beat, Nagi flicked her index and middle fingers against her thumb in the robot's general direction. The metal on her right bracelet lost its solidity before becoming a liquid in the blink of an eye and shooting out. In the instant it took to close the distance to its target, the metal sharpened and solidified into a thin arm-length spear that pierced the eye of the robot. Sparks erupted along with smoke a moment before it dropped down malfunctioning. "That's one."

The screeching of wheels made her pivot to find a bunch more ganging up against her. A wild smirk spread across her lips as she flicked the same fingers on her left hand to make the left bracelet liquefy out of shape and solidify into another spear to send flying at the robots. Two fell the same way the first did but the third managed to dodge her spear and charge her way. Using the first one she'd put out of commission as a ledge, Nagi ran at it and used it to jump out of the way of the attack before swiping both her hands downward at the robot. At her command, the metal spears turned in midair and shot back at the robot while simultaneously morphing into slick sheets of metal. The two struck inches from one another and slid right through, decapitating the three-pointer robot.

 _Yeah_ , she thought with great glee as she landed behind it, _if I keep up at it like this, passing'll be a piece of cake._

Waving her fingers closer to her, the spears responded almost satiently and flew over to hover over either of her shoulders. Once she had them back, she went off on another sprint across the arena striking any and every robot she encountered. The secluded area she went to started her off with a good number of points, but as time dwindled down and fewer targets remained, Nagi found herself eventually coming into the battlefields of other people. Fortunately, her style was long-range attacks that with the flick of her fingers or the wave of her hand, allowed her to swipe points from under the unsuspecting or otherwise preoccupied. Avoiding the ones that ran at her after stealing their points or the those that tried nabbing points away from her, she stopped only when she was unable to withstand the burning of her lungs any longer. Damn her shit endurance. But with the the points she racked up, she knew she could afford the rest.

" **One minute remaining!"**

The announcement got drowned out by the massive destruction that came from behind her that blared so loudly that Nagi found herself covering her ears from the noise. Eyes grew wide as she looked over her shoulder to see what caught everybody's attention and made that horrendous sound. A gigantic robot strode forward decimating the makeshift city; taller than any of the buildings, it made light work of the roads and edifices that it came in contact with. It's stupidly large size and the sheer amount of destruction it caused told her one thing right out off the bat: _Zero pointer._ There wasn't any point in dealing with the huge chunk of junk. There really seemed to be only one prudent choice to settle on like Present Mic had told them.

Though she decided to take that suggestion for what it was worth, Nagi stopped short just as she turned to retreat when the cries of help reached her ears. The source she found after briefly scanning about were some of the other kids that had been caught in the rubble made by the robot's entrance. Despite seeing that others were trying to help and hurry to get them out, Nagi felt divided. She didn't merit in helping them; surely the school wouldn't allow serious damage to befall their examinees. It was only logical to think that they'd be forced to stop the robot if it came even close to harming them. But the another part of herself—the one she didn't like one bit—told her that she couldn't just leave them be. A good number of kids had gotten themselves trapped in the frenzy and the ones helping were slower than the robot. There wasn't a doubt in her mind that it'd get to them before they could rescue them and haul ass out of its way. They'd be crushed.

 _It's not necessary. It's not necessary. It's not necessary._

" _We don't help people because it's our job. We help people because we want to protect them."_

Clicking her tongue, Nagi checked the area around them the sense of urgency driving her to think desperately on her feet. Fighting it was out of the question. That thing was humongous and even if it was a robot made of metal, she didn't know it's exact composition. To make any assumption could end with fatal results, if she guessed wrong.

 _Then if I just stop it..._

She let that random thought sink before nodding to herself and going with it. Yeah, stopping it wouldn't involve fighting...but it would require a lot more than the couple of flimsy spears she could make of bracelets. Good thing this was a modeled city. Nagi ran past the kids trying to help those out of the rubble and along the sidewalk with her hand outstretched while heading straight towards the robot.

"Hey, stay back! That thing's gonna kill you if you fight it!" a girl shouted. Her amber irises against the black sclera of her eyes struck Nagi's photographer eye but it was needless to say that now wasn't the time.

She pushed the urge back, rushing ahead while shouting back, "I'm not gonna fight it! I'm gonna stop it!"

But that would greatly depend on how much of the metal she could scavenge from the building. As her fingers ran across the concrete, she felt its coldness against them but her Quirk felt beyond that and sensed the small traces of it in the mixed alloys that made up the beams of the framework. But it was far from enough.

 _Come on, I need more than this!_

Flicking her other hand outwards to the building on the opposite side of the street, one of her spears pierced and scraped alongside the concrete of its wall to allow her Quirk to search it as well for the metal. Not iron, not steel. _Come on, Yuuei, don't disappoint me by having made these shit buildings out of scrap metal!_ And they didn't. On boths sides, her Quirk finally found the titanium lingering in the framework, the heaviness of controlling it weighing on Nagi's every muscle fiber, and with that much of it, she could certainly stop the zero-pointer. Letting go of the building but not of her control, she ran up to the middle of the street to stand between the robot that kept a steady pace towards her and the kids stuck behind her.

Holding her arms wide open with her fingers outstretched, she forced her muscles to move the gigantic load she amassed. Her arms drew across her body and after the lag added by the weight, her Quirk followed suit. The buildings and the floor trembled underneath her feet as they were torn from their foundations, the concrete falling from its framework as the titanium she took from them jutted out like spikes from a trap. The spikes were slow to form but hard enough to pierce the zero-pointer all through its body once they did. It's engine revved as if trying to escape from its prison but after its futile attempts, died quickly after with sparks flying and smoke fuming from its head. It had one last moment of sputtering before it slumped over completely broken.

" **Time's up!"**

* * *

 _And that's it! :D Head over to_ **Golden Repair** _for the full chapter and to start another adventure with me and my new baby, Nagi :3_

 _Now I have many thanks to give to you all just for being utterly amazing and reading this story through my ups and downs where uploading is concerned :) Stay tuned for next chapter where Aya and Akio will visit the City of Gold and meet a couple of con artists turned gods._

 _Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and that you have a lovely day/night!_

 _-_ _ **Evie**_


	12. Memoir XII: Sacrificial Snake

**Memoir XII:**

 _Sacrificial Snake_

* * *

Humidity kills.

It's a proven fact or at least one that I'm hating right about now when we pass through the threshold of the gate and into the next world. The moment we do, it feels disgusting and the heat that radiates from above, though it passes through a heavy canopy of tall trees, is intense. Immediately, I regret having chosen a long sleeve when considering my clothes back at Traverse Town. I'm half inclined to take it off and simply zip my coat closed to ease the nasty feeling of having a second skin on me, but I think better of it when Akio comes up to my side, holding his headband between his teeth and brushing his hands back across his face and against his hair. It slicked back with the sweat from the humidity and he starts airing himself, grabbing at his jacket and shirt to let some air in as he scouts the place.

"Looks deserted."

"It's a jungle, Aki," I tell him, doing the same as him to alleviate some of the discomfort. "No one in their right mind would want to live here. It's freaking disgusting."

"Searching for those memories will be harder then," he says, groaning at the thought of more work. "Can't Aurelius guide us to them? It seems pretty well acquainted with how they work."

I open my mouth to deny this but thinking better of it, I turn to Aury who seats on my shoulder. "What ya say, buddy? Can you give us some sort of hint?" Aury bobs back and forth before unwinding from around my neck and flying out into the middle of nowhere. He turns every which way, his tail swaying back and forth when until he suddenly stops and dives down onto the ground. Rustling under giant leaves and dirt, we both run over to Aury and find him overly enlarged as something inside his mouth struggles to be let free. Panic sets in me and I reach down to pry his mouth open; he struggles against me but eventually gives up and lets his mouth fall open to release what looked to be an armadillo. It's lathered in saliva and plops down on the ground, dirt and leaf bits sticking to its body. It quickly scurries away shaking as it escapes its near death experience.

Turning to Aury still in my grasp, I grin. "Well, guess hunger beats everything." But just as I'm about to put him down, his incessant chewing takes my attention. He munches through whatever is inside its mouth before swallowing. Once done, Aury shakes himself and starts morphing into another shape. I let him go and he falls to the floor still shining gold, and ends up as a replica of the armadillo that ran away from him. Everything's the same except the color; where the animal was a light brown, Aury remained golden with the Spirit insignia on its back.

 _Cute._

Aury scratched his tiny new head with his tiny new hands before standing up on its hinds legs and sniffing at the air. His itty bitty ears perk up seemingly finding a trail before tucking into a ball and rolling away in that direction.

"Guess he can."

With a swift nudge to Akio's shoulder, I run after Aury who swiftly treks through the jungle we just got to. He's so tiny and fast that we have to constantly be shouting at him to slow down all the while trying to keep track of the gold armadillo. The humidity doesn't help. It's hell trying to get through this jungle at such a quick pace and after an hour and a half of that, I can't anymore. I stop in my tracks and bend over, hands on my knees to get a hang of my haggard breath. Akio, noticing this, stops a few feet away and barks out at Aurelius to get himself back here.

"Too—fast—too—long—" I gasp through bated breath and plop down on the ground to catch my breath and let my racing heart calm down. "Give me...a break."

"Seriously?" Though he said this, I can clearly hear his own pants from how much he was pushing himself too. "You need to exercise more."

"Screw you," I retort and watch Aury return to us and uncurl from his ball form.

He pads over to me but stops midway to suddenly turn to the side. His ears perk and he runs off again. I try calling him back but before I can, the splash of water takes my attention. Akio and I stare at each other for a brief moment before we trot over to where Aury went and find him floating on his back in a fairly large pond. Akio crouches down near the edge and sinks a hand in to bring up a handful of it..

"Seems clean."

"Drinkable?" I ask, stepping up from behind him.

His shoulders slump but takes the hint and sips a bit of the water in his hand before letting it seep through his open hand. Almost immediately, he spits it out and starts rubbing at his mouth. "Nope. Not at all."

A chuckle escapes me and I mutter, "Bummer." I give a nod towards Aury who seems to be enjoying the water just fine, sinking his head in and spitting out water from its tiny mouth in an arched stream. "Looks like it's a nice dive though." Those words suddenly gave me an idea and a devilish smirk comes to my lips as I take a few steps behind Akio.

"The water's cool despite the surroundings. We could probably—Ah!" The resounding _splash_ that comes after I push him in is music to my ears. The pond is deeper than I imagined and he takes a few seconds to resurface, but when he does, mercury eyes are glaring at me. "Really!?"

Giving him a shrug of my shoulders, I grin and take a few steps back to get a running start. His glare turns wide as he stutters trying to find words to stop me. Nothing does. I jump straight at him into the water.

The first thing I feel is cold. Blissful coolness that surrounds me. My clothes, soaked through, make me heavier but it's not uncomfortable or burdensome. They're basically like a second skin that clings to me but instead of being disgusting like before, I don't mind them as much this time. Suddenly I feel hands on my waist pulling me up until I break through the surface. The gasp I take of air the moment I do leaves me immediately as a bubbly chuckle that turns to full out laughter escapes me the moment I spot his peeved glare.

"What? You said it's clean!" Pushing his hands away from me, I try reaching the bottom of the pond but find that it's too deep for me when my head starts falling below the surface again. Rushing to me, Akio wraps a hand around my waist and pulls me up like nothing.

"Could you stop fooling around for once?"

"Learn to have some fun," I croon and try to swim to the edge of the pond. Akio doesn't let me go though, maybe thinking that I'll just drown if he does. That he treats me like a child irks me but the thought doesn't last long when I hear rustling not far from us. Akio seems to hear it too because he suddenly stops in his tracks and spares a glance over his shoulder. I follow suit.

Neither of us speak or move. Even Aury freezes in place, letting the residual waves in the pond move him around. More noise, more rustling. Then out of the blue, something breaks through the thicket of the jungle—no, not something.

Someone. _A girl?_

The brief, frantic look in her eyes strikes me just before she slips and goes into the pond. A gasp leaves me but before I can jump back in to help her, Akio rushes ahead telling me to 'stay put' as he goes instead. The noise as he breaks through the water in long strides is rowdy as hell. Soon enough he dives in and within a minute he breaks through with her in his grasp frantically fighting. Rushing to him when he goes to the opposite shore, Aury and I meet them there in time to see the girl trying to kick off Akio.

"H-Hey, cut it out!" He shouts, avoiding the hits by keeping his distance, and tries to calm the girl down.

When it's useless, I try instead by grabbing onto her fists to keep her from punching me before quietly speaking to her to soothe her. "Hey, hey, it's okay. We're not going to hurt you." The girl and I meet eyes for the briefest of moments, the fear and panic crystal clear in her dark brown eyes. When she opens her mouth and mutters a few words, I finally understand why she's so hysterical. _She can't understand us._

" _It would appear so,"_ Rinto affirms. _"Though her frenzied behavior is quite understandable too."_

Whens she says this, I can't help but blink a couple of times before annoyingly saying, "You can understand her?"

Akio's confusion isn't a surprise but I ignore him to put more attention to Rinto's reply. _"Yes, though it has been centuries, I believe I can still understand them."_

Though that sentence alone tells me what I want to know, it also brings up some questions that I don't have the time to ask at the moment. _Help me translate._

" _I could actually do something better than that."_ My eyes burn without my call, stinging a little more than they usually do. Rinto doesn't let me ask what she just did. Instead, all she says is _"Speak."_

Trusting her for what it's worth, I take a breath to prepare myself and repeat what I said before. "Hey, it's okay. We're not going to hurt you."

Both Akio and the girl stare bewildered at me and it's then that I recall what my Deceiving Eyes can do. Something that I forgot they could do, actually. Depending on the mask I wore, I could mimic more than just someone's looks. I could copy their voices too. And judging by the fact that the girl can understand me, this one is one that can speak her language.

"You...you can understand me?"

 _No._ But thanks to Rinto's quick translation in my head, I didn't have to say that. Nodding and smiling gently down at her, I looked her over for any injuries. She was somewhat alright, only having some scratches and a bloody temple.

"Would you let me look at it?"

She's still very cautious. That worries me since it'd be much harder to treat her that way. Thankfully, her guard drops enough for her to nod. Muttering a quiet 'great' under my breath, I get to work cleaning what's left of the blood after she fell onto the pond. Akio, having nothing to do there, brings himself out of the water and starts wringing out his clothes as much as he can. I tell the girl to pay him no attention, that he's a friend of mine, and remind her that we mean no harm. She says nothing still but seems much more relaxed when I talk, so I keep talking.

I ask her what her name is; she says it's Itzel. Sounds rather exotic but she says that it's a common name where she comes from. Though I guessed she was young, I didn't expect her to be as young as ten. She wasn't even Haruka's age. Finally, I asked her how exactly she got lost and gotten all those other scratches and injuries. Itzel told me about something she called the entrance to Xibalba, how she and her siblings had been playing around daring each other to see how close they could get to the cliff above it, and that she had slipped and fallen into the whirlpool below.

"Is this Xibalba?" she asked after telling me all that.

At first I didn't know what to say, utterly taken aback as I was about all this information she gave me. I spare a glance over my shoulder to Akio who despite not understanding what we're talking about, keeps a lookout for us. Not having an idea of what to say to her, I let him in on what we'd been talking about while making sure Itzel couldn't understand us. Akio nods pensively after hearing it all, eyeing Itzel before coming back to me.

"Maybe we should play along."

"Play along?"

"Xibalba—from how you said she described it, I think it's some kind of sacred place to her." He meets my eyes and through a veil of tinted carmine, he narrows his own. "What does Xibalba stand for?"

" _Place of fear."_ What Rinto tells me, I repeat back to him. _"It's an underworld of sorts."_

"Then let's play along," he suggests again.

"And what, lie?" I hiss the last part, the mere word leaving a bitter taste in my mouth.

"For now. It'll help her cozy up to us enough for her to guide us to where she lives. We'll be bringing her back to where she lives meanwhile too. Wherever she comes from might be the place where we'll find what we're looking for."

He's not wrong. In fact, the more I think about it, the more it makes sense to do things this way. It'd be easier, for sure, though I don't like it much. I've been trying to avoid lying outright like he's suggesting we do for a few weeks now. Not much of a record, I know, but it's still something.

 _I guess it's okay if it'll be for only a short while—just long enough to get what we came here for._

Sighing in defeat at the end, I nod in agreement. Akio gives me a few details to add just to make things vague enough to make us believable. Letting my eyes and Rin take over, I rely on powers I thought I wouldn't have to rely on again for this. It sort of sickens me that doing this—wearing a mask fully over myself—still feels natural. Like the perfect glove for my hand. In spite of myself, it feels...fitting.

"Itzel, Xibalba will not take you. It's not your time yet." This seems to soothe her enough to breathe a little easier, shoulders relaxing from their tension slowly but surely. I don't let it fully settle. "But it may seem that we were sent here to take you back home, back to your siblings and parents. Do you know the way home?"

Her gaze lowers to her bare feet, her brow knitted in thought until she looks back up and shakes her head. " _Tata_ has told us that we should always look for a waterfall if we ever got lost and couldn't find our way back home."

 _Waterfall._ That's quite a broad landmark to go by but it's something, I suppose. Wringing my own clothes of water first, I tell Itzel that we'd search for that waterfall and find a way to get her home. For once, she shows me the faint trace of a smile. Just as we're about to leave, though, Aury plays around Itzel's feet before tucking away into a ball and rolling away.

"Aury, this isn't the time to play!"

Akio turns to me with a raised eyebrow. "Bit your tongue saying that?"

Before I can tell him to shove it, Itzel tugs at my sleeve and points after Aury. "They're guardians."

"Armadillos?" I ask, blinking out of confusion a few times. She nods before saying that she sees why it's with them too; they're guides.

Akio shrugs his shoulders, the action barely even noticeable to me before motioning off to the running Spirit. "Let's follow the damn armadillo then."

The trek through jungle while following Aury takes us hours. Between babying Itzel and making sure Aurelius didn't go too further ahead without us, the time passess slowly but at least it's a much more sensible pace than what he had us on before. Damn steep mountain almost killed us at the near end but we managed to slide down safely enough and find ourselves in the middle of an open, rocky field with fog blocking our vision.

 _No, not fog._ It's so fresh against my skin that I'm able to correct myself as I raise my hand to touch the water in the air. "Mist?"

Akio, instead of replying, nudges my shoulder before pointing straight forward to a giant rock slab nearby. The mist covers our surroundings and we're forced to stick together, Itzel holding my hand and I holding onto Akio's jacket as he leads the way towards the rock. Once there though, I'm utterly confused by what it depicts.

"Are those...drawings?"

"Gods," Itzel says when she notices me tilting my head.

"Deities." Akio's conclusion makes me wonder if he really can't understand Itzel. He's quick to clarify when I tell him what she said and why it struck me as weird that he repeated the same thing she did. He walks closer to the slab and places a hand against the chiseled granite. "I've studied murals before. Depicted language was more reliable than written apparently." His knuckles rap gently against the hard surface. "Much sturdier too."

After hearing this, I turn back to Itzel. "Are these your gods?"

She nods vigorously, her head almost coming off of her shoulders. "Very powerful. Very scary."

 _Great. Just what we needed. Scary, powerful...gods…_

The sudden loud gasp that leaves me is so out of nowhere that both Akio and Itzel jump a few feet away from me panicked and taken aback. My brow knits briefly at seeing them do that. _Their so strange._

"What possessed you now?" Akio asked and instantly reminded me of the epiphany I had a moment ago.

A broad smile comes to me when I do remember and I skip close to him before shoving my wrist where the golden bangle jingles in front of his face. "Remember what Joshua told us? About getting these off."

"Yeah," he says and pushes my hand away from his face to look at me with a raised eyebrow that silently judges my sanity. "That he didn't know how to take them off."

"Keep going."

Mercurial eyes go askance at my insisting and he mulls the answer for a bit. It's not until I see his eyes widen that I know he's got it. "They were meant to unite gods—"

"And only gods can remove them," I finish for him. _Maybe we've unknowingly hit the jackpot._ Excitement threatens to overflow from me and it does in a small squeal at the mere idea of finally getting these things off.

All that, though, goes out the damn window when I hear the thunderous beating of footsteps rushing our way. I'm not the only one who hears them either. Aurelius scurries over to me and hides between my feet. Akio's eyes are focused on the pebbles scattered around as they shake from the force coming from the footsteps. Instinctively, I push Itzel behind us and I pull Ares out to extend it just as Akio let's his fists be enveloped by darkness. Just then, a stampede of Drill Syes rushes through the mist, heading directly towards us. There isn't much room for us to talk to one another, only to dodge out of the way.

Itzel and I separate from Akio and Aurelius, the stampede putting a wide distance between us. Not even shouting at them gets their attention. The loud stomping of their hooves is too deafening.

The Drill Syes are quick to turn around before they can crash the base of the mountain and head for us a second time. My mind runs at a hundred miles a minute thinking through our options. The horde of Nightmares isn't infected, but they look strong and there's many of them. Fighting them doesn't seem prudent. Not when I'd be stuck protecting Itzel. Even if Aury and Akio take fully to the battle and leave me to guard her, they're still too many of them.

 _But if we fight together._ Maybe. Just maybe.

"Aurelius!" Thankfully, my call resonates through what I can only assume to be a valley because of how my bellow echoes now. He rushes to my side, no longer in his armadillo form but in his golden ball shape instead. "Can you take care of Itzel?" Aury's shape turns bright gold as he changes shape and ends up a Cerra Terror, just slightly bigger in size than the Drill Syes. I take Itzel by the wrist and bring her closer to me so she can hear me clearly when I tell her to climb Aury so he can take her to safety. Her wide eyes are deep-seated in terror but she eventually nods when I urge her again. In the end, she climbs onto Aury's back and he dashes off towards the safety of the jungle.

With them gone, I'm finally able to rush to Akio's side. He apparently sees me coming his way and clears it with a clean, darkness-charged punch. I vault over one of the Nightmares that rolls onto its side after the punch and land just behind him.

"Where's Aury?"

"Protecting Itzel."

"What?" Akio growls through another punch and kick, the dark energy charging off like electricity onto the Nightmares it hits. "You relegated our heavy hitter to babysitting duty!?"

The irritation that surges through me at his insinuations makes the swing I strike onto one of the Drill Syes with my mallet hit harder from the added force. "I'm not going to leave Itzel unguarded!"

"We can't handle all these ourselves, Aya!" he shouts and turns to me. When I turn to retort, I see his eyes narrow, not at me but at what was behind me. He leans forward to take a good grasp of Ares and pulls me forward and out of the way of a Drill Sye's attack. A good punch to it is enough to pop it out of existence. "They're too many!"

I know he's right but I don't want to admit that to myself. There's someone we have to protect. Someone who's depending on us to get home. I can't let myself be beat when that stands true. My mind runs through what options we have as we fight. Akio's quickly getting tired—his using that abysmal darkness to attack takes too much from him. Long brawls with no rest isn't sitting well with him— _it never has—_ and I'm not doing too well either. But we manage to dwindle the horde to half. They're a handful; one we could deal with if we weren't so exhausted already.

When Akio backs out with a flip after drop kicking one of the Nightmares with energized soles, he lands by my side but does so clumsily, needing to balance himself on the ground with his hands. That and his ragged breath give away his weariness. Knowing we won't last much longer, I count the enemies still remaining.

 _Seven. We can't deal with even one right now!_

Vanishing them one by one won't do it. We have to get rid of them in one hit with what little strength we have left. Eyeing every single nook and cranny in our surroundings, though, gives me nothing to work with. It's not until the Drill Syes corner us against the large stone monument that an idea strikes.

Akio grabs my sleeve wanting to drag me away before the Drill Syes could charge at us, cornered as we were, but I stay put. I have no time to explain what I'm planning to do when the Nightmares charge. My eyes dart between them and the vague shape of the shadow from the monument behind us. One after another, they rush past it and when the last one is about to rush through, I slam the mallet down onto the floor and cast Blizzaga. Having no other way to go, the spell explodes across the floor and catches the Drill Syes unawares, freezing them in place. The ice is thick and even when they're power houses, it'd take some time for them to break free. Not much though.

 _But long enough._

This time, I drag Akio behind me and dash out from in front of the stone to the back. His eyes are wide in shock from what I did and only widen more from what I tell him.

"Break the base."

"What?"

"Break the slab's base!" I exclaim and run back to get some distance and running start. Akio gets to work after questioning me only that once and pulls his arm back to gather dark energy. It crackles a dark ebony and purple and when he hits as low on the slab as he can, the energy releases across, managing to break the base with few cracks spreading upward. But with the base left weakened, it'll topple.

 _It just needs a strong enough tap._

With my running start, I vault with Ares and while midair, spin and swing the mallet to strike the top end of the slab down. The earsplitting _crack_ of the slab entirely breaking from its foundation is deafening and it falls down straight on top of the frozen Nightmares. The ice cracks beneath the weight of the stone and the Nightmares caught below pop out of existence almost simultaneously. I fall out of the sky to land over the slab, the ice splitting further underneath my feet.

Ragged breath behind me makes me look at Akio who sighs in relief at seeing the battle done with. Heaving a sigh through my nose myself, I whistle out to Aury who comes back from his hiding spot with Itzel on his back still. Her eyes are wide at noticing what we did to the slab depicting her gods but before she can say anything, more footsteps catch our attention. Adrenaline still rushing through gives us enough strength to stand at the ready, I with Ares and Akio, apparently at his limits, brandishing a dagger.

This time our attackers aren't Nightmares but human. They're people dressed very much like Itzel—it's not hard for me to put two and two together. They're her people. And by the spears and headgear they're using, most likely soldiers.

They eye us and the slab but only brandish their weapons when they recognize Itzel on Aurelius' back. The moment they do that, Aury growls at them. I call out to him to stop and he does though very reluctantly. Itzel takes over quickly, seemingly more comfortable in the presence of her people, climbing down swiftly from Aurelius and running to the man with a jaguar's skin over his head. They're too far from us and talk way too fast for me to hear them and have Rinto translate. And since we're very much outnumbered and exhausted, we can't do much except stay put until they finish.

 _Surely they wouldn't harm us after protecting one of their own, right?_

Itzel finishes her talk but the mildly bitter expression on her face causes uneasiness to run through me. The head honcho of the group comes to us with his men and Itzel behind him.

"You understand me?"

Akio turns to me with a raised eyebrow but I only see that out of the corner of my eye. My attention is focused on the people still holding spears to us and I nod at them. "I do." They seem a bit shocked that I can and even more so that I can speak it. I take that from them and run with it. "We found Itzel somewhat far from here and meant to bring her back home."

"We shall return Lady Itzel back to the Chief," he sternly says. "You will go no further."

"We would like to see her safely there after the attack by those monsters just now, if you wouldn't mind." I'm aware of how pushy I sound but if Akio's right then entering this city of theirs is imperative to looking for what we're searching for.

"Outsiders are not allowed in our city."

 _Persistent._ Though I hate it, I run along with Akio's lie from before. "We were given explicit orders to return her. She arrived at Xibalba—" the word seems to garner some shocked gasps from the soldiers, "—it's our order to return her home ourselves." Remembering the slab behind me, I put some zeal into my statement with the next part. "We're guardians sent by the gods."

The man's eyes widened for a brief moment before narrowing on us. Itzel comes closer and tugs at the man's clothes. Her whispers are quiet but I manage to catch most of what she says.

"...maybe _Tata_ will know about them…"

 _Thank goodness for children._

Jaguar man's gaze remains on Itzel for a moment before returning to us. "Very well. We shall take you to the chief's abode where Lady Itzel resides." He turns back to the others and tells them to lower their weapons and, thankfully, they do. With a nod of his chin, he motions us to walk ahead into the crowd. They want to guide us in surrounded.

"They want to guide us to their chief," I quietly say to Akio as fast as I can. "Don't think they believe we're guardians from the gods."

Hearing this makes Akio's brow furrow. "Guardians from the gods?"

I shrug half-heartedly as part of my reply. "It sounded like they'd believe it better."

He nods and walks ahead of me towards the semi-circle they've formed. A small nudge of a horn makes me give a sidelong glance to Aury who's still in his Cera Terror form. Reaching up a hand to him, I ask him to turn back to be easier to carry. When he does, more gasps come from the soldiers and they start muttering in what sounded like awe. _Well, guess that's a point for us._ Who else but special beings would be accompanied by a shapeshifting creature?

Despite being as unsettled as they seem to be, they allow Aury and I to walk to Akio's side before they start guiding us forward. A noise I hadn't noticed before reaches my ears and gets louder and louder the more we follow them in the general direction. It's not until I see a waterfall that I connect the noise, mist, and what Itzel told us before.

A waterfall—it's disguising an entrance.

Jaguar man passes through no problem through the waterfall, making both Akio and I look at one another before walking through it. We try passing through quickly so that our clothes, which had just dried off from our play a few hours ago, don't get too wet. Once through we follow to a shore where longboats are docked. The jaguar man guides us to one and once we're settled, the boats rock back and forth through the water.

Looking over the side of the longboat, I catch sight of my reflection breaking on the rather calm waters. All this seemed oddly simple. The trek through the cavern was slow and quiet. Neither of us speak, not wanting to bring attention to ourselves more than necessary. Aury hovers over to me and nestles on my lap, morphing back into the golden armadillo. As he does, though, a strange light catches onto him, making him gleam brighter than usual. We both notice this and turn behind us as the boat passes through a curtain of long, hanging ivy with light parting through the slits as they move.

The city that meets us on the other side of the cavern and ivy is bathed in moonlight and is nothing but gold.

My hand reaches up to pat at Akio's hand out of astonishment but miss. My fingers touch his wrist instead and pull. He turns to me with the same awe in his eyes that I have on mine. This isn't like anything we've seen before.

 _It's beautiful._

Our fascination with the city of gold stays with us even after we dock and the jaguar man takes us away. Briefly, I notice that Itzel is accompanied by a couple of the others soldiers as they make their way opposite of us. Though I'd to see where they're going, I'm more preoccupied with where we're going to notice where they take her. Jaguar man takes us deeper into the city—one where it looks like they just had a party of sorts—and into a high stone temple over fields. The stairs are stupidly numerous but I find it easier to climb them at an angle to ease the rise. Akio follows my lead with Aury jumping the steps after us.

On the top of the temple, we find what looks to be a shrine of sorts. The first thing I notice is a stone slab very similar to the one we broke to defeat the Drill Syes before. Before it, chanting something underneath his breath and on the floor praying is a man. The jaguar man goes up to him and the man seems pissed at first for being interrupted but when he sees us after standing up and looking away from slab, his demeanor changes.

 _That's not strange at all._

He gives an overtly over the top gesture with his hand as he introduces himself. "I am Tzekel-kan, the priest of this city. My acolyte has told me of how you saved the Chief's daughter guiding her back after she fell through the spiritual gates." It irks me that he isn't even looking at me. He's referring to Akio all the while talking; it's like I'm too insignificant to talk to.

I don't know if it's rage or annoyance that tints my vision red the moment I notice this. It's not until I start talking that I realize that it's my powers tinting my eyesight. Stepping forward, I puff out my chest to make myself as menacing as I can be.

"We did." I punctuate each word with the emotions brimming out of me. "The gods sent us to guard her, a poor child that had the misfortune of falling into such circumstances."

Tzekel-kan waves a hand out again to dismiss my words, a wide grin still plastered on his face. "Yes, well, the gods sent no word to me whatsoever. And seeing as I am the messenger of the gods, that makes you two a pair of imposters."

Out of the blue, hands grab my shoulders and before I can push them away from me, they take a hold of my arms to force me down to my knees with my arms pulled at an angle over my head. Grunts beside me and the heavy thud of his knees hitting the ground tell me they caught Akio too. Aury quickly unwraps from around my neck and begins to transform to fight back but before he can, a stream of energy crackles from the small pool of water in front of the stone slab and charges out to Aury striking him in mid-transformation. I cry out at seeing him return to his small ball form and fall to the ground, the energy coursing through him and making his wings twitch. With no more threats, Tzekel-kan walks over to me, bending over and grabbing my chin in his sharp-nailed fingers.

"Moveover, our gods warned us centuries ago about the snakes that purge the pure. Snakes with eyes the color of carmine blood." A feral frown comes to me and I pull away from his grasp. He stands and chuckles, "Snakes make for a much better sacrifice than simple human flesh. Our gods will be truly pleased that one of you has walked straight into our grasp."

 _Sacrifice!?_

Adrenaline kicks in again but I'm too tired to get out of the hold they have me in. Instead all that does is make them push me down further, face against the floor and arms taut upwards in an awkward and painful angle.

"Let her g—augh!" Akio's shout is cut short as they push his head down but his body never hits the ground like mine.

Tzekel-kan grimaces at his interruption and from the corner of my eyes I see the priest take a few steps to Akio. Fear courses through me the instant I see him do that. Instinct takes over me then.

"Leave him alone!" My shrieks echoes against the stone walls and he stops. Not trusting that he'll leave Akio alone, I keep talking. "You want a snake, you got me. But he's not one of us, so leave him alone!"

"Whether his fate is the same as yours or not will be left for our gods to decide." Tzekel-kan gave a curt nod to the soldiers before saying, "Imprison them until tomorrow's ceremony." The shouts that leave me are quickly muffled by a hand and despite our struggle, they drag us away.

* * *

What Tzekel-kan referred to as a jail was actually a small stone edifice. Small as in just a single room with only one entrance and exit opening at the top of the windowless room. A chiseled stone column held the room up in the middle and the ladder that they brought down to help drop them inside was easily pulled up afterwards. Despite knowing that their priorities were to escape before morning came, Akio had a much more urgent matter to attend to in Aya.

The guards had bounded their wrists behind their backs plus another rope around their waists and through their bound arms to keep them on the lower side of their backs. What Tzekel-kan had told them to do specifically was blindfold Ayano with a thick black piece of cloth tightly bound around her head. He'd never seen her fight so ferociously like he did when they approach her with blindfold in hand. She fought with everything she had even kicking a guard in the face for good measure but in the end, they held her off long enough to tie it.

Aya flipped the second they tied the knot, screaming at the top of her lungs for them to take it off. Even now, despite her voice starting to go hoarse from her yelling, she struggled to take the blindfold off with her knees, breathing heavy and sporadic in her attempts. Her desperation to remove it made her sloppy and Akio needed her calm and collected if they were going to get out of there alive.

After the guards took the ladder, Akio stood up to run to Ayano's side. Frantic as she was, she jumped at him suddenly nudging her shoulder with his letting out shriek that made him flinch. But instead of backing off, he talked over her shouts.

"Aya—Ayano, listen to me. You have to stop freaking out. You're gonna pass out if you keep breathing that fa—"

"No!" she shouted, her knees up to her chest as she continued trying to drag it off of her face. But the cloth as tightly bound as it was didn't budge. Even when it moved a tiny bit to expose part of one eye, it slipped right back down. "I-I want this off now! I can't—see—"

"I know," he says, quieting his voice to make her focus on it. She does surprisingly enough but with her breathing becoming shallower and shallower with each passing second, he knew that he needed to work quick. "There's a wall behind you. I need you to scoot back onto it."

"W-What?! What nonsense are you—"

"Do it so I can help you take it off."

That prospect snapped her head to attention and she immediately pushed herself back with her legs until she hit the wall and her head hung forward. "O-Okay, now what?"

"I'm coming near you. Don't freak out." He said those last three words with enough clarity that she nodded and worked on not doing that. With that, Akio stepped closer and knelt down in front of her before scooting himself closer. Her knees touched him first and she visibly flinched from the unexpected touch. Stopping briefly to remind her that it was fine, he took his time until he was close enough to her.

"Lean your head back against it." She did as he told her, her mouth parted and breathing shallow still. "Now, I'm going to try getting it off. And I'm going to be way too close for comfort so try not to kick me, alright?"

A chuckle escapes through her lips at the sad excuse of a joke he tried pulling but it served to distract her enough for him to lean forward. With him being taller than her by much, it was easy to reach the edge of the blindfold with his mouth. Ayano flinched beneath him again when his lips touched her forehead just to the left and over her eyebrow. He tried a couple of times to catch the cloth with his teeth but it kept slipping out of his mouth, the piece a little too tightly bound for that. Akio heaved a sigh of frustration but that vanished almost instantly when his ears caught the faint sound of sniveling.

Mercurial eyes strayed down to see her face completely and widened at seeing the tears that ran down her cheeks. The quiet sobs were muffled, her attempt to keep herself calm even going as far as biting down hard on her lip to keep her word to not break down on him. His chest swelled in determination to get that thing off of her then and leaned forward again. This time when he managed to catch the cloth in his teeth, he held tightly onto it and pulled downward. Feeling what he was doing, Aya reacted and pushed her head upward opposite of his motions. The cloth ripped between his teeth and the little extra room was enough for it to slip down her nose and freely to her neck.

Eyes bright red widened in gratitude and tears ran down freely now as a shaky smile spread across her lips. Akio sighed in relief and sat back giving her personal space while she used her knees to wipe away the tears from her face.

Letting his head hang back, Akio spared a glance to the entrance of the jail. He could jump out if he tried and fight the guards to free themselves but that put Aya at risk if he couldn't get her out in time before they brought back up. He still hadn't recovered from fighting the Nightmares at the entrance of the city either and knowing what his limitations were put a serious crutch on that plan.

"Don't try to fight them." Aya's voice was much calmer now that she could see though her eyes kept staring at the ground where their feet were. "You take time to recover, don't you? After you use too much darkness."

 _Observant._ But that was exactly how she was. Impressively nosy. He lowered his gaze and nodded, crossing his legs before him to sit a little more comfortably. "Yeah. But we can't just sit here, wait for morning, and let that crazy priest sacrifice you."

"Better me than you."

His brow knitting and eyes glaring at her, "No, it's not."

"You're only in this because they knew about me and Rinto. Though I don't know how that is." Her head tilted slightly to one side, something he noticed she did often when she talked to that power of hers. "Nevermind. Looks like Rescuers weren't beloved in every world they went to."

"Figures," he groaned under his breath. "But whatever they did shouldn't concern you. You're not them."

"Okay, fine. But we still have no way to leave this cell." Her eyes searched herself and noted how they took Ares. When she asked him if he had any of his weapons, he shook his head. They cleaned them out pretty well for their credit. "I guess our only choice now is to wait till the morning for them to let us out."

"And then what?" Akio asked.

"Ambush them." Blinking her eyes, the red disappeared from her irises and turned back to their hazel blue. "I can still lie to them. Those illusions should buy us enough time to free ourselves and fight back."

"Your plan is to wait?"

"You have a better one?" she asked. Though Akio wanted it to sound condescending, her words had been spoken with nothing but expectation. She wanted to get out of here as much as he did, if not more.

The answer was simple and nothing but a shake of his head. That settled, he made his way and sat beside her against the wall and stared up at the entrance. "If that's so, then we should rest. Better attack them with our full strength than exhausted out of ours mind."

"You're right." The sudden added weight on his shoulder made him give a sidelong glance at Ayano who let her head fall against him. Feeling his stare on her, she looked up and asked, "What?"

Rolling his eyes, he shook his head. "Nothing. Rest up."

"You too." A makeshift silence came over them, nothing but the chirping of crickets audible, which Ayano broke when she said, "Akio?" He gave a low hum of acknowledgement before she kept going. "Do I owe you a third one for this save too?"

"Save?"

Her head moved as she buried her face against his shoulder, her words muffled slightly by it. "For...taking the blindfold off…"

Akio leaned his head back and let it slide to the side until it fell against hers. "How about we make that one a freebie?"

"Mm," she mumbled and made herself as comfortable as she could. Though he clearly heard Aya's soft 'thank you' under her breath, he decided to give her wounded pride some rest and pretend like he didn't hear anything at all.

* * *

 _A/N:_

 _Much fluff this chapter and little bits of action, I know. But City of Gold and the next world were originally outlined to be a chapter each. I doubt that can be done and not feel rushed so I decided to step back and give these last two og worlds some time to breathe. Originally, this story was outlined to end at ch15 but I doubt that'd be the case. My guess, if I have to take one, would be closer to maybe 17 or 18. That's a rough estimate too._

 _Maybe with a few extra chapters that I may or may not add after it ends, it might reach the 20 chapter mark. So if these next chapters look a little bit shorter than usual, this is why! Also, I tried to do a update-as-I-write-them schedule this time around instead of the bulk. I'll see how it ends for me when I update all three stories. So far, though, updating in bulk seems better 0w0)b_

 _Thank you to_ _ **AniStar13**_ _for the follow and also_ _ **Aviantei**_ _,_ _ **Antex**_ _, and_ _ **oz-cocoa**_ _for the reviews! You guys are the best and I love you all_

 _Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and that you stay tuned for the next update!_

 _-_ _ **Evie**_


	13. Memoir XIII: Regrets of the Heart

**Memoir XIII:**

 _Regrets of the Heart_

* * *

 _Clink. Clink. Clink._

Aurelius growled low in its throat, unable to break out of the glass flask he was placed in. Cramped and dirty didn't begin to describe it. What suffocated him most was the spell placed on the glass bottle that didn't let him transform into anything else than his original form. But desperate to get back to his master, he tried whatever he could. His last resort being to knock the bottle off from the table the priest left him on.

 _Clink. Clink. Clink._

Close to the edge, he tried pulling back as much as he could before charging against the glass again, this time getting the bottle to fall off and break against the floor. As fast as he could, Aury shook the shock away from the crash and hid before the priest's acolyte came in. Aury managed to hide well enough on the underside of the table and avoided being spotted by the tall human as he examined the broken bottle. He muttered something under his breath before running off with his spear in hand, most likely to go and search for the runaway Dream Eater.

With the coast clear once, he flew out from the under the desk before turning in every direction to figure out a way to get out of there.

" _Aury."_

The sudden call of his name caught his attention. It'd been a mere whisper but it'd been loud enough to echo in the tall walls of the temple. He turned every which way until he found the small glimmer of light that gave off a faint silhouette. Something short.

A human child.

One eerily similar to his master but also different. Instead of long hair, hers was cut short with a small ponytail on the left side of her head, tied by a pink bow. And instead of blue-green eyes, the kid had large eyes the color of her bow—a soft pink hue of a flower he remembered eating a lot a long time ago.

The child playfully motioned for him to follow before bursting into specks of gold that floated in that direction. Aurelius chased after the specks and found her again at the end of a hallway. Just as he was about to catch up to her, though, she disappeared again with a soft giggle filling the air before she appeared again further away. Continuing the game of cat and mouse, Aurelius finally found an end to it when it took her to a particular room full of a lot of things shining the same color as him. From a particular pile, the girl waited, sitting properly and with a smile on her face. Diving down only brought him face to face with a pile of hard metal.

He'd gone right through her.

" _Sorry about that."_ Though she chuckled, her tone was truly apologetic. A forlorn smile even came to her transparent face as she tried reaching down to pet him only for her hand to pass right through. _"But you know that you can't touch us."_

Only see and hear them. Aurelius knew. His creator had implemented the function in him, after all. One similar to the eyes of the Perceiving Snake. One that allowed him to see and hear that which others could not. Things that laid in both light and dark and anywhere in between—the hearts and souls of those fallen and lost. Including those roaming in their plane or those attached to others. But that's as far as the function added to his composition allowed. Unlike the Perceiving Snake, he couldn't discern their source. And that was the least of what he couldn't do. Truthfully, what skill he had was just the surface of what the original could do.

Nonetheless, he stuck his tongue out trying to lick at the girl's hand only to have it pass right through.

" _It's alright. I don't really matter right now, Aury,"_ she assured him with that same sad smile. _"Right now, you have to stay here. Hidden. I have a feeling that you'll find your master if you wait here."_ Aury didn't want to, grumbling in protest and making her giggle at his response. _"I know, but maybe...if she can find a way to...we'll meet for real someday."_

With that said, her faint silhouette burst into specks of gold that shone with a light of their own before disappearing into nothing and leaving him in the dark room alone.

* * *

"Aya, heads up."

Akio's quiet warning gives me enough time to ready myself, closing my eyes to let the burning sensation settle in them. The clacking of the rollable ladder they throw down the hatch above us lets me know when the guards are climbing down to fetch us. Only giving them a few seconds of climbing down, I open my eyes to see my world tinted in crimson once again. I pay it no mind. My priority is catching them off guard. The instant the guards meet my eyes, I play the illusion.

They don't panic or shout for help. They act normally because all they see is me blindfolded still. One mutters to the other to get Akio while he gets me. Neither Akio nor I struggle against their advances. We just follow the plan, one we hatched over last night after sleeping only for a few hours. This place is foreign to us. Even if we were to beat the living daylights out of these guards, more could be waiting for us up there. Not to mention that the crazy ass priest has Aurelius.

Though I'd like to go ballistic tearing down this place to find him, Akio and I agreed that wouldn't be the sanest option. So we're going the passive route—for now anyway.

" _Are you certain this is a good idea, master?"_

 _It's the best one we have right now, everything else considered._ And if not, plan B is still on the table. Though plan B's just basically me tearing the place apart like I had originally planned to.

"You holding up?" Akio's voice barely rose above a whisper but whether they could hear him or not didn't matter since they can't understand him anyway. That little caveat ended up being a plus after everything.

"Yep." Even when I could see, I didn't want to get them suspicious by moving around too much. Akio didn't mind doing it for me since he had better ways to take in our surroundings. They're taking us somewhere high and out of the city, we both could see that just from the sudden change in our surroundings. But after a few minutes, the roar of crashing waves and the freshness in the air alerts us to where exactly we're going. As we get closer and closer, I realize that I confused the roaring of waves with the cacophony of a cheering crowd. And above their mingled voices, the priest's hollering sticks out most.

"This city has been granted a great blessing." His voices is thunderous and only gets louder as we get closer. "And what have we done to show our gratitude? A meager celebration."

Out of the blue, Akio's sudden shout is muffled and when I look up to see what's happening to him, someone pulls a burlap sack down my whole body. Hands tied, I can't do much except feel as whoever's handling me ties the top of the sack.

"Akio, are you—"

"I'm fine.". He seems a little farther than I thought but that quickly changes when someone picks up my sack and drops it on something hard beneath me. Touching it, I can barely feel the coldness of metal before I'm distracted by something else dropping just by my side.

"That you?" I ask, reaching out with my hands through the burlap. Thankfully, I can feel the vague shape of his hands through it and that lets relief wash over me for a brief second. "This is kinda extra—" just as I say that, I feel something pick us up again, this time not from the sack but by whatever they left us on, "—don't you think?"

"A little," he dryly jokes. Suddenly all those noises that I heard from afar break into a much noisier ruckus as we're lowered onto solid ground again.

"The god's deserve a proper tribute!" As he speaks, a different hue takes over my sight as the burlap sack around me tints a vibrant green, swirling around before disappearing into nothing. It leaves me, Akio, and another to stand before a precipice where a crowd watches safely from across. We both spare a glance to the man stranded between us; he looks horribly weak. Like he can barely keep standing as it is.

"The beginning of a new era, the dawning of a new age...demands...sacrifice."

 _Not good._

"Not only ours, but also that of a great demon that has plagued our world since time unnamed." Tzekel-kan steps behind me and with the wooden club he has, nudges at my back. Following his lead, I stand and look around me as much as my peripheral allows. He does the same to Akio as he moves over to stand behind him. "And those who follow the vile serpent's whims." Finally, he steps behind the feeble man beside me and stands him up with some kind of magic instead before pushing him further than either of us.

Eyes fleeting between him and Tzekel-kan, my blood rushes through me and instantly propels me forward to impede the man from taking another step towards the precipice and rushing waters below us. Not caring to hide it anymore, I undo the illusion on me and show my scowl to the priest.

"If you're going to sacrifice anybody, sacrifice me. Leave them out of this."

Tzekel-kan sneers, his eyes narrowing in distaste through his skull mask, before he seemingly calms down and moves the man aside with the flat side of his club.

"Your treacherous lies will not deceive me, serpent."

"I'm not lying," I admit, keeping eye contact with him. "If you've gotta kill anybody, then go ahead. But let them live."

"I will not answer to a monster," he says and steps forward, raising his club over his head to strike me down. Instinctively, my eyes close shut as tight as I they can and though I hear Akio say my name, another voice bellows loud enough to echo and render any other noise silent.

"Stop!" It shocks me to open my eyes and watch as Tzekel-kan stops just before he can smash my head with his club before turning to whomever yelled that. My line of sight goes beyond him and spots a handful of people there, but only two step forward—a dark-haired and a blond. Both grown men. The dark-haired one confronts Tzekel-kan straight up while the blond comes to the weakened man's rescue as he falls back exhausted. "This is not a proper tribute."

Ignoring them, I walk up to Akio who'd been pushed to his knees by one of the guards. They step back out of my way easily enough with how frightened they are of my eyes glowing a bright scarlet. Though I want to ask him if he's okay, I try listening in on the conversation the two man have with the priest. I'm utterly bewildered that he's listening to two simpletons that seem to be pulling shitty lies out of their asses. Regardless of whether they are or not, Tzekel-kan listens and seemingly apologizes for 'misreading the heavens' whatever that may mean. But at spotting us, Tzekel-kan's scowl returns.

"My lords, if anything, allow me to rid you of the serpent and its ally. They are nothing but true vermin that will only torment the people of El Dorado and yourselves."

"They're children—" The blond's remark is cut short by the dark-haired man's smack to the arm.

"Why would you say so?" the black-haired man asks instead.

"It is the _Chilticcoalt_."

 _Red Serpent?_

" _The priest misjudges you,"_ Rinto corrects in my head as we listen in. _"He thinks you are my first master."_

"I-I'm not her." The words spill from my mouth before I even notice and I curse myself under my breath before turning to face Tzekel-kan and these strangers. "Yes, I have her powers but I'm not the Red Serpent you speak of, and we really don't mean your people harm." Knowing I can't convince the priest, I turn to the other two instead as I let my Deceiving Eyes recede and turn my vision back to normal. "I swear, I'm telling you the truth."

The eyes of the two strangers widened when I speak to them normally and not in the people's tongue. But just as the dark-haired one opens his mouth to say something, screaming from across the abyss catches all of our attention. The moment Akio and I spot the portals opening to let Staggerceps and Aura Lions through, 'nightmares' comes loudly through my lips. The Staggerceps remain on the other side but the Aura Lions aren't bothered by the giant leap and take it to reach us. Seeing them mid air, I rush to a spear one of the guards left behind and grab it by the blade behind my back. I somehow manage to rip the ropes holding my wrists together and toss the spear closer to Akio seeing as I have little time to spare. Ripping Ares from its holster, I extend it and let the spear emerge to catch one of the Aura Lions as it lands, impaling it right through its chest. It pops out immediately but a handful of others already landed and charge towards the few on this side of the cliff.

Vaulting over them and landing before the two men, I plunge Ares' other end down onto the ground and cast Blizagga, creating a wall of ice wide and high enough to buy me some time.

"Akio!" I call over the wall that separates us now. "Get the others!"

"I'm on it!" The ground shakes as he takes off, the dark trailing off after his jump.

Counting the four behind me, the priest sadly included among them, I brandish Ares out to keep them at bay. "Stay behind me." Soon enough, the Aura Lions plough through the ice barrage I made, but this time I'm ready. Though I'm fighting alone, I can keep the others busy as I go for one at a time. Since it's only four, I dodge a few before attacking the one on the backlines and popping it out of existence. When two charge towards the two men from before, I change the spear to the mallet and swing as far as I can to swipe them out of the way, smashing them against one end of the ice that still stands. With one left, I pivot while twirling my staff in my hands. "Here, kitty, kitty." Taunted, it charges forward—a little faster than I expected it too. Unable to dodge his attack, I take the brunt by bringing Ares across to keep his jaw occupied. His teeth grind against metal and it roars deep in its throat as it threatens to rip me to pieces. Finally gathering some composure, I hold it steady before kicking it out from under me. It vaults over and before it falls to the floor, I jump back to stand and turn to pierce its chest just as it touches the grounds. It let out a howl before vanishing into a haze of purple.

Those over with, I undo Blizagga and watch the wall fall down only to see Akio done as well, helping some of the citizens that were hurt by the Nightmares. Damn, fighting alone is much harder than I remember it being. Wanting some rest, I plop down to sit by the edge of the cliff while leaning against a propped up Ares. Cluttered footsteps approach me quickly enough and I spot both the men from before coming to me when I glance over my shoulder.

"W-What were those?!" the black-haired man hissed under his breath.

"Nightmares," I tell him as I stare off at Akio who seems to be finishing up on his side. When he turns over to us, I wave back and smile. It's easy for him to take the leap again and lands gracefully on his darkness-covered soles. He eyes me for a second before turning to the two men. "They're monsters that might come back again if we don't find what we're looking for."

The blond speaks up this time, just as troubled about these news as his friend. "But you fought them off, right? And you can just do it again."

Their question strikes me as odd but it's Akio who asks the questions this time. "We can, but the priest called you gods. Can't you just make them disappear yourselves?"

Their sudden shushing of Akio makes my eyebrow raise in suspicion and Rinto notices this. _"Master, I have the slight suspicion that something's amiss here."_

 _You're not the only one._ But I have no time to ask either her or them what that could be exactly when the two rush up to Akio and I, bringing Akio down to my level so they could talk to us in a hushed tone.

"Listen, here—mm…"

The black-haired guy pauses for a moment, pursing his lips in thought as to what to call me. Being this the case, I point at myself and Akio to introduce us respectively. At hearing our names the blond one steps up with an arm over my shoulder and an amiable grin on his face. "Pretty name! I'm Miguel, and he's Tulio—"

"Enough introductions." Tulio seems greatly aggravated by Miguel's nonchalance at the situation at hand. He turns to Tzekel-kan and the others to briefly assure them that everything is fine and to give them a moment. When he turns back to us, he's assuring smile turns to a slight frown. Pretty amusing, really. "Now, you two here looking for something?"

"Yes," Akio takes off Tulio's hand that was pulling him down by the arm, and shoves it aside. "What about it though?"

"Well, perhaps you'd like to hear out my proposition then."

"Spit it out, goat-man," I tell him, too tired from fighting and worried still about Aury to play along for much longer. "What do you want in exchange for our protection?"

"Pro—that's ridiculous—we don't—"

"How did you know?" Miguel asked almost impressed while Tulio kept babbling off to himself.

"I know a liar when I see one." Though I say this as quiet as before, they still hush me. My eyes almost roll out of my head now that my patience has reached its limits. "Listen, whatever it is you're hiding, I don't care about it. We'll play along if you can promise us free access to the city."

Miguel and Tulio take my words for what they're worth and discuss it amongst themselves. As they do this, a girl maybe around Akio's age comes next to us and measures us both up and down like we're some kind of prized meat.

Akio's the one to burst her bubble. "Need something?"

Surprisingly, she understands him, perhaps having learned something from Tulio and Miguel. She taps her finger against her cheek with a pensive expression on her face before she points to me with that same finger. "You're the feared _Chilticcoalt_?"

 _That again._ My hand comes to rub the back of my neck as I look away briefly to try and find a way to explain this to her. "Not...exactly? I'm one of the successors. So I have their powers but I'm not the one that your people seem to know."

"Huh." Not a very reassuring answer but not one that's disconcerting either. "I heard one of the Chief's daughters was saved by strangers from beyond the waterfall." Grabbing onto Akio's wrist and raising both of our hands despite his protest, she nods as her lips become an impressed tight-lipped smile. "She also said that they were messengers from the gods." At saying that last part, she pointed behind her to the guys that were starting to hiss a little too loudly for it to be a private conversation anymore. "But from what they said, you know neither Tulio or Miguel."

I shake my head vigorously and give her an equally tight smile. "Nope."

"So you're from the outside as well."

"What's all this roundabout questioning for exactly?" Akio asked. Well, someone's cranky from not getting enough sleep.

"Oh, nothing. Just trying to figure out how to best put this." With her hands behind her back she walks to Tulio and Miguel and intervenes in their conversation. Because they're talking so low, I can't hear anything that they say but it's over just as quickly as it started. Both turn to Tzekel-kan and Chief Tannabok—the girl, Chel, tells us all this as she comes to stand by our side to present herself as well.

"The Red Serpent and its servant will not harm you or your citizens!" Tulio announced, apparently saying something that Chel told him would be the easiest way to get them what they wanted out of this. "We have tamed them and are now our loyal servants."

"I'm not liking this," Akio mutters under his breath as the announcement continues.

"Ditto," I mutter back but bite back any retort. If this is what's going to get us free leeway into the city then so be it. I'll be a glorified leashed dog if I have to. _Again_.

"They will guard El Dorado for as long as we remain here and will not injure anybody—"

Miguel briefly interrupts, putting in his two cents into the conversation. "A-And we'll tolerate no offense either. Either from them or against them."

"Under our control, they are now guardians!"

Tulio's last words seem to ignite the crowd again as they applaud, their cries filling up the air around us. The two turn to Tzekel-kan then as if daring him to say anything against their decree. Incredibly, the creepy ass priest stays quiet and that brings a smug smirk to my lips.

"My lords, that being the case—and in spirit of celebrating one of the gods most dangerous foes subdued by your greatness—may the people of El Dorado offer you our tribute."

The Chief motioned behind him to the temple from where young ladies came out carrying gold platters filled with nothing but more gold. Every last one of them. _That's...a lot of gold._

" _El Dorado is not called the City of Gold for nothing."_

I see that now. Apparently, the loads of cash impressed Miguel and Tulio quite a lot too. "The gods have chosen!" And when all of them were out with the ridiculous amount of gold in hand, the Chief asked one last question. "To Xibalba?"

 _Xibalba?_ The word rings a bell and gets me tapping my chin in thought. While Chel is freaking out beside me, I turn to Akio instead. "Is it me or have we heard that word before?"

Akio opens his mouth to answer me but stops short when Miguel and Tulio reply to the Chief's question with the same words. "To Xibalba!" We both move out of the was as the woman come forth towards the precipice and with smiles on their faces, toss the tribute of gold down the cliff and into the swirling water rapids. Staring down to watch, I blink as the gold swirls round and round, glimmering in the sunlight only to disappear.

"Their spirit world," Akio finally says as he leans beside me to look down as well with a lopsided grin.

"Ah." By the looks of it, Chel's telling that exact thing to the two since they definitely don't look happy about their treasure being fish food. Finding it all quite amusing, I move my hand down and mutter 'flush' under my breath. Just then, though, the Chief bellows a mighty 'stop' that makes all the girls halt right in their tracks.

A cluttering mess falling from one of the platters causes a huge commotion and catches my attention. Tulio manages to stop the platter that rolls away but when I spot a ball rolling towards the precipice, my heart stops for a second before I dash out for it. Skidding on my knees, I reach down and barely catch Aurelius by his tail before he could fall into the waters below. I'm a little too far forward though and I feel myself tipping over. A little slow but certainly too fast for me to stop myself. Thankfully, Akio skids behind me to grab me around the waist and pull me back onto safe grounds. He groans as I land on him but, thankfully, Aurelius plops safely on my chest and shakes before happily snuggling against my neck.

"Thank goodness you're okay," I mutter under my breath, hugging him close to me.

"Yeah, fantastic. We got the munching ball back." Akio's groans are a tad bit louder as he pushes me off to sit me in front of him and rub at his aching gut. Chief's sudden bellow makes us jerk in place as he orders the girls to take the tribute to the 'gods' temple.' When Chel returns to Tulio's and Miguel's side, the former congratulates her before motioning for us to follow them back to, what I'm guessing, is their so-called temple.

"Come on." Akio pats my shoulder as he gets up and helps me as well before we trot after the trio. As we run by, though, I swear I hear Tzekel-kan mutter something under his breath.

Something that I really don't like.

"Smile while you can."

* * *

Though somewhat amused by what I just heard Tulio and Miguel tell us, Akio and I keep an apathetic expression—something not hard for him, but it's somewhat difficult for me seeing as I'm trying real hard not to crack a grin at their sheer ridiculousness. A chuckle betrays me though and my eyebrow raises in disbelief to hide it.

"A boat?"

"Yeah." Actually looking serious, Tulio nods for emphasis, his arms crossed in front of his chest as he and Miguel stand in front of where we're sitting. Akio doesn't seem interested and tugs at Aury's armadillo tail, making him chase it around. I'm paying some attention if only to know the gist of what's happening in this world this time around.

We got most of it down from what Chel told us while the guys were off having their 'boat' talk with Chief Tannabok—Chief Tanni for short, Chel said. He likes it better. I certainly like him better to with these special perks he apparently mentioned for us seeing as we're 'guardians' of 'the gods.' _Neat. Unnecessary but still neat._ These couple of con men were trying to swindle El Dorado's people of their gold. But when comparing how full their temple was with tribute to the rest of the city, I'd guess it's not a fraction of what the people have. It's still quite the load though which brings back the idea of the boat they had asked Chief Tanni to make.

"So what? You intend to—" A snort leaves me by accident as I put my hand perpendicular to the ground and then sweep it upwards, "—fly up with a _boat_ to wherever gods go?"

"Hey, at least we came up with an okay excuse," Miguel sheepishly said, rubbing the back of his neck and averting his eyes. Oh, he knows how stupid it sounds too.

"Great one at that." Akio gave them a cheeky thumbs up without much of an expression or even sparing them a glance, sarcasm overflowing fantastically. "Grade A lie." Though neither of them appreciate his acerbity, it does get a chuckle out of me.

A sort of rambling squawk comes out of Tulio, his hands flailing about frantically to get our attention back on the matter at hand. "Forget about that. Point is we got us a way out of the city where we _take_ the gold with us. That's good news."

It seems neither Akio nor I are put at ease by that last part and we both say, "And the bad news?" It does take me a little by surprise but not enough to look back at him. Instead, all I do is chuckle and hear him huff somewhat amused behind me.

Miguel pursed his lips and shifted his balance between either foot, eyes wondering before landing back on us. "Well...Chief Tanni said he'll have the boat ready in three days."

My brow scrunched together, not understanding what was so bad about that. Three days for such a huge ship that can take such a heavy load of gold? They should be damn grateful. "And how is that bad again?"

"What do you mean 'how's that bad'?" Tulio's almost fuming from his ears and I start wondering if this is how he is all the time. "We can't keep up this farce for _three days!?_ "

"I agree with that." Akio received a nasty frown from Tulio but I remind him to keep on track with what we're discussing. I suppose I kind of see what he means but saying that would just be plain mean, so I refrain from doing it. Instead I shrug my shoulders to lessen the worry on Tulio's mind. Doesn't seem to do much though.

"Well, three days of laying low should be easy, right?" Guess words don't work to lessen it either. _Guy's just too wound up for his own good._ "Just...lay _low_."

Out of the blue, Tulio turns to Miguel—who seems way too lost in the grand scenery of the city beyond their temple—to point at him with both an accusatory finger and piercing glare. "That goes double for you."

"Me? But, Tulio, look at this place! It's amazing! I mean, I wonder what's—"

The sudden bickering that ensues keeps me entertained for a bit as they fight about what 'lying low' really means. Its entertainment value drops fast, though, and soon I'm focusing on other things to keep me busy. Though I see Tulio's problem with Miguel wandering around, I've gotta side with Miguel on how magnificent this place is. A whole city where almost every single thing is gold. Don't think even Midas himself would have made it any better. But as those thoughts leave and I'm left with nothing to look at but a mountain of tribute in the temple, I'm terribly reminded about the search that we have to embark on. Though not a whole piece of land, El Dorado is still a huge city even when enclosed by the tallest mountains. That being the case, searching for the memory piece lingering here will be a true headache.

Aury brings the tiniest of reprieves in our search, thankfully. Since he's the one opening the doorways now and thusly has to get the memories into him first— _still don't have the slightest clue how the hell he does that either_ —he's our safest bet on finding it. I don't know how or why, but he's got some sort of blipper on him that can at least tell us if something's within a five foot radius. It isn't much to go by but at least we know there's nothing among the tribute given to Tulio and Miguel. Doesn't prove it works but you can't prove a negative either. It's still something in my books.

Now that just leaves the rest of the freaking city to scour through.

" _Better get to work then."_

 _Don't sass me, Rin._

"Hey," Chel steps closer to us, grabbing our attention for herself as she smooths out her skirt. "You guys want to go look at the city too, don't you?" How little clothes she and most of the citizens wear stopped bothering me after the initial shock wore off. Akio, though, seems a bit more timid about it and simply tries not to look anywhere beside her face. It's a tad bit cute how, even when he does this, I can still see the light bit of dusting that touches the tips of his ears.

"Not exactly for sightseeing but yeah, that's the plan."

"Head out with Miguel then." Her voice is just above a whisper so that Tulio, who's busy gloating over his gold, doesn't overhear her. At the mention of the blond, I glance around the temple and tilt my head when I find no trace of him anywhere. Huh. She must've sent him off ahead of us.

Akio seems suspicious at first, frow burrowing and eyes narrowing on the young girl. "You're all too eager to get us out of here."

Chel's lips pursed into a taut line, one that seems more playful than mischievous. She tiptoes up close to me and reaches out her hand to pat my head like I'm some kind of kid all the while giving Akio a somewhat wolfish grin. "Well, let's say that whatever it is, it's not suitable for children."

 _Excuse me, the fuck what?_

Huffing and jaw slacking at what that comment implied about me has me almost going off on Chel. Before I can do that, though, Akio's already up and pulling me to my feet to rush us both out of the temple as fast as he can. His grasp on my wrist isn't tight but what does has be curious is how the previous pink dust on the tips of his ears turned into a much darker and noticeable red now.

Curious about what the hell made him jump ship, I start immediately up with "What did she mean by that?"

"Nothing I'm the least bit comfortable talking about. Least of all with you."

"What?" _Seriously?!_ "I'm not having that! What did she mean!?"

There isn't holding any of my annoyance back and I pester him all the way down the endless set of steps from the temple. He keeps deflecting until we reach the bottom and finally turns to me, his face burning up red how red as he leans into my ear and cupping a hand over it to not let his voice travel too far.

The answer to my question is succinct and straight forward. A few words is all it takes really, for me to connect the few dots and get the whole picture. Almost instantly, my face explodes with the mounting embarrassment that crawls under my skin. My mind is so jumbled trying to decipher what he just said that I can't even form sentences for a full second.

All that comes out is a quiet 'oh'.

"Yeah, so..." He clears his throat, covering his mouth with his fist before motioning out into the city with his thumb. "We should...uh, start searching the city."

Owlishly blinking is all I can do to get his words to process properly through my brain. "Yep, let's." Without another word, Akio starts off before me and I find myself following after him to get as far away from that temple. For as long as I possibly can.

* * *

It's rather nice that the city is empty. Odd but nice. It makes it easier to search too since Aury can morph out of his armadillo form to wonder in his actual one. It's not so much that he can't be like that in front of people, simply makes things easier to explain when others see him. But after hours of going through solitary streets, only catching the passing glances of guards who don't dare cross us, we come up empty handed.

"Are you sure he's not malfunctioning or something?"

Having to frown at Akio's rude comment for a moment is much too long. I ignore him long enough to call and reach out to Aury. He swiftly comes back to me and wraps himself around my neck to rest on my shoulder. Poor thing's tired.

My mouth parts but just I mean to speak, the rumble of my stomach interrupts me and I avert my eyes to keep from meeting Akio's. "Let's pick up the search after we rest and eat something."

"Especially eat, by the sound of it."

It's rather quickly that we find a place to rest. The city being vastly vacant makes that easy enough. Finding food, on the other hand, is quite the task. We end up finding a vendor that, despite what he says is a ban from the streets due to a religious cleansing, is still selling via small contrabands. Fortunately for us, he finds munny interesting enough to accept as payment for the food. The small prepared dishes he gives us are extravagant, not just in presentation but in preparation too. They're just...not food I've ever seen before.

"Interesting." I poke at my food a few times to make sure it's really dead before digging in. It has a strange flavor at first, certainly an acquired taste, but I'm quick to settle with it with how hungry I am.

Akio takes a few bites before letting it sit beside him on the steps we're using as seats. "Too salty."

"Salty from where?"

"You're going to end up with so many health problems if you can't taste that." I slurp up what I think is a noodle and it wriggles its way into my mouth before I chew at it. Akio only rolls his eyes, incessantly shaking his head and scoffing. "You're unbelievable sometimes. How hungry can you even be to eat something like this?"

"Beggars can't be choosers!"

Agreeing with me on that at least, he shrugs a shoulder and passes his food to Aury who simply swallows the whole thing, plate included. In the span of time that I take to eat, we start noticing the quiet mutterings of people as they begin coming out of their houses. Whatever rules were seemingly in place had a time limit, apparently. Curiously enough, none of them approach us, still very much cautious of us.

 _Or me, more like it._

The noodles I slurp up suddenly taste sour to me. This reminds me too much of Wasteland. Of how things used to be when I was smaller. People watching precariously from afar, gauging how to act and what to say in front of me, but in their minds always speaking the truth—the vile and monstrous extremes. To some, I was a monster. To others, a pitiable foster case. They all hated me though, that much I knew for a fact. They tolerated me because of Os and Ortensia.

" _Things are different now, master."_ Rinto's voice is gentle and soft, like she's trying to comfort my rattled mind. _"You know that."_

 _Yeah, I know. It's just that here...it's like I'm that kid again._

"Aya...are you alright?"

"Huh?" Akio's brow is knitted down in concern as he keeps his eyes rapt on me. Lips pursed into a line fell half open for a second but nothing came out. Not until another moment went by and he had time to think better of what to say.

"You just seem out of it. Like you're lost somewhere else or something."

 _Not too far from it, actually._ "I'm fine?" That came out more like a question than I intended it to and it gets a dry chuckle out of my throat as I tear my attention away from him. "Yeah, no, don't worry. I'm just remembering some crappy times from my childhood."

"You want to...talk about it?" Blinking a couple of times, I can't help but turn his way again and stammer, struggling to find words to ask exactly what he means. He shakes his head at seeing this, turning away all at once. "Nevermind, if you don't, it's fine—"

"No! It's not that! It's just—Well...umm, how do I say this..." Too tongue tied to think of anything to say, I just sit there rubbing at the back of my neck as my feet shuffle underneath me. "I'm not...used to talking about it, I guess."

"I get it. It's hard to talk about stuff you don't like remembering."

He grabs Aury by his tail and lifts him to hover over my empty dish. Aury sniffs it briefly before engulfing the whole thing, getting it stuck in the process and making his body look like a half-flattened ball with wings. It's not until Akio lets go of him and he clatters audibly on the floor to roll away that a chuckle escapes me. A grin tugs at the corner of his lips when I meet his gaze again and I return the gesture, the ill feeling mostly gone after that laugh.

"Just know you have an ear here that'll listen if you ever need it." I scoff but it's well-meaning despite what his small frown tells me he thinks of it.

Quickly as I can, I wave at him dismissively so that he doesn't get the wrong idea. Once I have that astonishment out of me, I smile and nudge my shoulder against his while chuckling. "Same for you, grumpy boy."

"Grumpy? Wh—I'm not—"

Laughter bubbles out of me as he tries to change my mind but can't find the right words for it. Having had enough of sitting around, I jump out of my seat and trot over to Aury who just managed to chomp down on the plate that had him so bent out of shape. I bop him on the head as I pass so he'll follow after me. Akio calls for us to wait but I make him work for it and instead he chases after us as I follow the way most of the crowd is heading. The more crowded the way gets, though, the more the noise of exhilarant cheers and applause floods my senses. By the time the sheer amount of people stops me in my tracks and Akio catches up to us, I'm caught in the back of something. It's hard to tell what's happening with so many people blocking my way but at spotting a high tree, I tug at Akio to follow.

It's when we reach the top that we feel rumbling shake the tree and it brings our attention below where a group of large men ran up to stand before Tulio and Miguel. All of them in the middle of what looks like some kind of arena. Neither of us are quite sure what exactly it's for. We get our answer pretty fast, though, as the buff men from before rush out into the arena, aiming for the ball in the middle of the ground. One of their feet connects onto the ball and sends it flying off. Tulio has the damn reflexes of a cat, though, and avoids getting beheaded. That thing could be considered a damn deadly projectile with how fast it flew.

From atop what looks to be an platform, Tzekel-kan and Chief Tanni overwatch the whole ordeal, and at seeing what happened, the former calls out to both of the con men down below.

"My lords, were you not supposed to put the ball into play?"

"Ball into play?" Akio repeats under his breath as he turns towards me.

All I can muster as the ghost of a smirk as realization hits me. "It's a game."

"What? That's ridiculous. What kind of game even is that?"

Offering him a shrug of my shoulders as answer, I point out to where Chel is sitting with a grin. "Let's ask." It's easy to get down safely when Aurelius morphs into an Eaglider and brings us close to where Chel is before transforming back. She lets out a relieved sigh at seeing us and points out at the playing field.

"Great, now you can go join them."

"Join—you mean the game?"

Chel's head almost snaps off from her neck at how fervently she's nodding but before I even say anything about that, she's already pushing me towards the arena with a hand clutching Akio's arm to bring him along. We're tossed into the midst of it as Miguel bends down to get the ball back. Tulio exhales the biggest sigh I've ever heard from anybody when he sees us..

"Oh, fantastic! Some help!"

Akio shakes off Chel's hand and rolls back his sleeve that she had pulled down. "Yeah, no, you might want to rethink that."

"What?" Miguel gasps loudly, his hands handling the ball with both hands. "This is going to be impossible with just the two of us, though."

"You're _gods_." It sucks that I have to remind them of that little caveat. They shouldn't be needing help. Not by a long shot. When I tell them this, they seem to have thought about the same thing though, because they groan loud enough to catch the attention of the chief and the priest.

"Is something the matter, my lords?" Tzekel-kan bellows from above his watchtower.

Now that all the attention is on us, I can't say anything without seeming disrespectful. That's the last thing that I want, especially in front of the god-crazed Tzekel-kan. Fortunately, Tulio's quick on his toes and manages to concoct a fairly believable lie.

"No, none at all!" He brandishes out his hand to both Akio and I. "We know it's greatly unbalanced but we want to take our newly, um, _acquired_ pets on a test walk. So, they'll be joining us for this little game."

 _Oh, Akio didn't like that._ Before he can lash out, though, I push him back and away from Tulio and Miguel before he can strangle the supposed gods for making us join this fiasco. Though I'm not the least bit happy either, I tell Akio that our best bet around here is being on their side and definitely not on Tzekel-kan's bad one. He fumes for another second before letting out a forced 'fine!' and asking in the same breath just what the hell kind of point system this game consisted off.

"Ball." Miguel raises it in his hands to show it to us. It's not rubber, that's for sure, but it does look bounceable. Hopefully, it won't break my feet when I kick it. He mimics throwing it upward towards the hoop that's latched high on the concrete wall. "Through hoop. And voila, point for the gods' team."

Another groan comes from Akio as he walks off to get into a better position. Not before letting out an "I hate you already" from under his breath as he does so, though. I try not to be as pessimistic as Akio but it's tough not to be.

 _Maybe it's not as hard as it looks._

I couldn't have been more wrong.

Already almost an hour into this damn game and we haven't even scored a single point. Not to mention that my hips went numb halfway through all this from all the idiotic attempts I've made to knock the stupid ball into the hoop. Akio tried as well but even if he has the advantage of height on his side, it's still not enough to get it through. At least we're trying and we're lucky to be as fit as we are from all our fighting and whatnot. Tulio and Miguel are more useless than I feared, though. They're regular people and get tired on us by the time the hour rolls in.

Just as I'm trying to steal the ball back, another one of the warriors intercepts me and kicks it out of bounds almost hitting Chel. As she's there, they call out for her to bring back another ball. Akio and I, breath ragged and lungs and muscles burning, approach the other duo who's doing no better than us.

"This is—impossible—" Akio's having a hard time catching his breath and that worries me a little. This is definitely doesn't hold a candle to fighting Nightmares day in and day out but these warriors are putting up a good game, out-running us on every turn. Not only are they faster despite their large bodies, they're also stronger because of them. They're in peak physical shape and compared to them, we're subpar without our powers.

 _Augh, I'm gonna need some real intensive training when I get back to Yen Sid's._

"How," Tulio needs to take a large gulp of air before he finishes that sentence, "How long does this go on anyway?"

"The game is over when the shadow touches this line." She swiftly points a finger outward towards the shadow of the watchtower behind us and I spot the red line she talks about. Judging by that, we may have a good thirty more minutes of ass-whooping to take.

"We need a miracle." Miguel's suggestion isn't one I bet on. Especially since there's no such thing as miracles.

Just then Tulio surprises me when we both say the exact same thing aloud. "No, we need to cheat."

As if answering our prayers, Chel shows us the ball in her hands. A ball...with eyes? _That thing's the…_ Tulio cautiously takes the ball from Chel and before I can even think, the game starts up again. This time though the armadillo ball goes off on its own and dodges the warriors all around us before coming back to Miguel and jumping out through the hoop. Our cheers burst through after a small span of silence as we finally score that _sweet_ first point.

 _Now we have a game!_

The little fella working with us has a mind all of its own and helps us in both scoring and keeping the warriors from scoring themselves. With us scoring some points of our own, it seems that even Akio's having some fun too with the boisterous cheer he gives out as he scores one himself. The four of us play around this like its nothing. Somehow even their horse Altivo gets involved and we easily pass the ball from where Akio and I are on the ground to Tulio and Miguel atop the horse.

We both stand back to watch but our smiles disappear at hearing Chel's hissed warning as she holds up the armadillo beaten up in her hands. Akio turns to me just as I do and we both see the dread in each other's eyes.

 _That's not our ball._

"Shit."

But we can't do anything now. Miguel's already thrown himself off Altivo and kicks the ball back into the hoop. It lands inside it but refuses to go in. My eyes go back and forth between the ball and the shadow fast approaching the red line.

It's when they go back to the hoop once more that I see it—

It goes through.

The horn's holler signalling endgame is almost completely drowned out by the deafening applause and cheers of the crowd. Us included. "We won!" Running up to Akio, I practically tackle him down from my excitement. He just laughs it off, thrilled himself about our win. It's light and something I've never heard before and it gets me laughing alongside him. He quickly brings both of us up, somehow having the strength still to easily pick me up by my waist. We rush over to Tulio, Miguel, and Chel who're just as jovial as we are. Even Aury, who spent this whole time with Chel on the sidelines, grins his toothy smile as he wraps around my sweaty neck to snuggle against me. But it all disappears when Tzekel-kan shows his ugly mug in front of us with the nastiest comment there is to have.

"And now, you will, of course, wish to have the losing team sacrificed to your glory!"

Just like that the cheers quite literally die out and are replaced by horrified gasps, utterly changing the jovial mood that had been so dominant for the last half and hour. Miguel's having none of his bullshit though.

"Look, Tzekel-kan, forget the sacrifices! We don't want any sacrifices!"

The priest ain't having any of it either and tries his damnedest to get his worthless point through Miguel. Even throws Tanni under the bus. What a scumbag. Thankfully—and quite expectantly—Miguel doesn't budge.

"The gods are speaking for themselves now. This city and these people have no need for you anymore!" As he continues, he goes to the warriors who're kneeling down, pleading for clemency, and picks a few of them up from their knees. The rest follow suit and stand behind him in solidarity. "There will be no sacrifices—not now, not ever!"

Cheers, including, ours erupt from that statement and after being jeered by Miguel and mocked by Chief Tanni for good measure, Tzekel-kan leaves rather peacefully. As expected, the whole town applauds Miguel's words and boast both him and Tulio as they lift them over their heads to parade them out of the arena.

We follow after the crowd as I fan myself, just now realizing how sweaty I am. The same thing seems to be true for Akio as he wipes his arm across his glistening face. It's not until Aury starts licking me, seemingly liking the salty taste, that I chuckle and turn to Akio.

"We should probably skip the celebration and go take a shower, huh?"

He groans out a "fucking yes" before raising his voice and saying, "Yeah, we should."

* * *

The soft tapping of its feet was not as quiet to its heightened hearing but swiftly ignored as it continued to climb the slanted building with its small paws. The neon blue color of its cracked skin and flames dulling to not be as noticeable, it continued its trek upwards until it found an opening into the pyramid. Extinguishing its flame and by extent all its color, it stuck to the wall easily and threaded down the slope of the ceiling until it got a fairly good view of the interior.

The gargantuan stone jaguar was center stage among the cluttered mess of shelves filled to the brim with exotic ingredients. A stone slab came in second and not far from there a small, round pool of some liquid. Certainly not water. Below, two humans—the priest and his acolyte—wandered up to the stone slab, the priest's voice echoing loud enough for the Night Terror to easily overhear him. Despite its instinct to attack and devour the humans on sight, it knew better than to cause unnecessary attention to itself. Orders were given to all of them and so they would do as their master commanded.

"Do you know why the gods demand blood?"

It's ears perked up at hearing the malicious intent in his question. Gods demand blood in this world? Curious, it thought. Perhaps gods of different worlds wanted for different things. It crawled closer towards the side of the jaguar but just far enough to not be seen by them if they were to look at the shadows. The small flame that roared to life at seeing the blood from the cut the priest ripped open on his hand almost gave its location away, though. The Night Terror quickly quelled the temptation again, stepping against the darkness of the temple for good measure.

"Because gods don't bleed."

Beady blue eyes zeroed in on the way the knife wound on the palm of the priest's hand healed without any help. Magic? Perhaps, but it would be rather inferior if all it could do was heal a measly cut.

"It's time to take the future into my own hands, and this city will be cleansed. Even if I have to do it myself." The moment it saw them clear away from the stone jaguar, the nightmare crawled out of the dark and crept closer to the statue making haste to climb onto it. It perched on its left eye and stared into the smooth stone surface before scratching at it with its small, sharp claws.

"There are dark magics here...and power, and—Ooh, my, my, my, my, my," despite the distance, it could still hear the priest talking to himself, his overflowing malice hiding its presence well enough. "It's not called the Age of the Jaguar for nothing."

Clawing into the eye more and more, it finally broke through—though stone, the eye had been hollowed ages ago and mended. A feeble coat to cover the defect effortlessly torn down by its talons. Its beady eyes focused on the item inside, a golden crest. Circular, big enough to fit in the palm of a human's hand, and with the outline of a heart etched onto it. Old too by how dented and scratched it was.

It reached out to grab it but when it got too close a small golden orb appeared surrounding the crest and impending it from snatching it away. Hissing as it jerked its hand back, it tried a couple more times before a small flash of thunder shot out with enough force to strike it down from the jaguar's eye. The Night Terror managed to avoid falling, catching itself on the stone with its claws and climbing onto the head of it as a pain struck inside its empty head. It scratched and scratched at it, pieces of black tearing off and disappearing into dark smithereens that disintegrated into nothing, as a voice echoed in its head.

" _Here they are. Sealed as you requested. Now only our kin will be able to have them if we're to disappear."_

" _I knew I was right to leave this in your hands. Thank you, Ro."_

 _Ro? Why did she always insist on that nickname. It made him sound like such a kid. Seriously, his name was so much—_

" **Forget about it."**

 _Master._ Coming fully into attention at hearing its master's voice, the Night Terror stood still atop the head of the jaguar. Its own head hurt no more, the voices disappearing almost instantly when its master's voice came to its head.

" **I see, she had them sealed. Could her foresight have been as powerful as our master's? No, that matters not. Neither does whether she knew if her successor would search for them. We found it. All you have to do now is wait for Ayano to undo the seal. Bring it to me once that is done."**

Understanding its new order, it lit the neon blue flames of its head and tail, letting the color bleed into the cracks of its body, before whirling and sinking into the stone jaguar. Spider cracks extended across the head of the jaguar and shone a bright neon for a split second before dying down.

"This'll be a delightful way to bid the false gods and that red serpent...goodbye."

* * *

After the long day, Akio had hoped to get some well deserved rest. But sleep eluded him for another night, giving him only a few good hours like it had done for the last few weeks now. Ever since starting this damn excursion, now that he thought better of it.

 _Maybe a walk will help clear my mind and find a couple more hours._

Hopeful, he headed out without looking back to go down some of the numerous steps of stairs of the temple. The full moon was out and it illuminated plenty, the stars spotting the darkness of the sky and making pictures he couldn't begin to name. He remembered his mother once telling him about them but that memory was long lost.

One stood out in his mind though since it was the easiest to see. The seven brightest stars formed the Big Dipper…

" _And those seven stars are part of a much bigger one."_

"Ursa Major."

"Can't sleep?"

Though not surprised to find someone else awake too, Akio hadn't expected for Chel to be wandering the temple at night. Nonetheless, there she was, walking down the steps to stop beside him and stare up at the same stars.

"Not much of a sound sleeper." He didn't pin the native for someone with bad blood. Judging by her reasons for joining Tulio and Miguel on their con, she wanted nothing but adventure and the freedom to choose what path to take. He could understand that yearning. "You?"

"Kind of hard to find any sound sleep with two grown men snoring as loud as can be." True enough. Akio could just hear their snoring from where he and Aya slept outside of the bed chambers and pitied Chel who shared a room with them. "You don't seem to have that problem though. From what I saw as I came out, Aya's the soundest and quietest sleeper there can be."

Scoffing at that, he half-nodded with a slight tilt of his head. "So sound that I sometimes have to make sure that she's still breathing."

"I see," Chell chuckled at the amusing description and glanced behind her briefly before returning to him. "Well, they must have no regrets keeping them up at night unlike us."

"Regret?"

"Chief Tanni said that to me once, back when I was younger." Her hands came to smooth the skirts of her nightwear which wasn't much to begin with. "I guess now it's telling me that I'm going to miss my home despite wanting nothing more than to see the world beyond it." At saying that, she gave Akio a sidelong glance before tilting her head to the side to fully see him. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

"You regret anything?"

"Lots of things."

"Not all are the same though," she pointed out, gently prodding the conversation further. "There must be something that's much more on your mind than the rest."

Not knowing why, he gave it some thought for a brief second. Some did come to mind: letting his mother be taken and leaving home; having let Teobaldo into the sanctuary; having accepted his proposal to hunt down the Rescuer he wanted; latching the binding bracelet onto her wrist. And that was to name a few.

One alone stuck to the forefront of his mind, though, and weighed his soul down, tightening his chest as well and making it that much harder to breathe anytime he thought about it.

 _I wish I could just tell her…_

But he couldn't. He couldn't find the courage to do it. Because he knew that the moment he did, Aya would hate him for it. And the thought of that alone terrified him now.

"What does it matter to you?"

Chel pursed her lips and nodded in agreement. "You're right. It doesn't much. Though I can't help but feel bad for someone like you."

"Don't. I don't need your pity."

"I can see that. Doesn't mean I won't. I know how heavy it can be to carry something like that, though." She gave a light pat to his shoulder before heading back up, stopping just after a few steps upward. "Just take care of her. She's way too friendly for her own good and others could easily take advantage of that."

Though he didn't quite get how in the hell she talked like she knew what he'd been thinking, he didn't feel like asking and instead nodded. He watched her receding back until she disappeared into the temple before looking back up at the sky for a few more minutes to let that last sentence of hers sink into his mind.

They could at least agree on that. Aya was definitely too nice for her own good. Always wanting to help others no matter what it cost her. Something others could easily exploit, which was why he also agreed with wanting to keep those who would away from her.

 _Just wish there was someone who could keep me away from her too._

Now that he thought about it, there was someone. Well, some _thing_ to be more precise. Wanting to tell it what he needed to, Akio made his way back to the temple and found Aya still soundly asleep with Aurelius curled up close to her face. Walking up to them, he carefully picked Aurelius from beside her, waking it up in the process and garnering his attention. Akio took a seat just a few feet away from where she still slept and held Aury in one hand to let the Spirit see and hear him without having to be too loud.

"You care about her, don't you?"

One of his wings scratched the top of what Akio assumed to be his head. It turned to glance at Aya before nodding as his reply.

A soft scoff left him, the ghost of a smile curving his lips. "Me too."

Reaching with his other hand, Akio petted the Spirit and it snuggled against his hand not minding anymore the kind of harm his touch could bring it. He wasn't sure if talking to Aury was the best thing to do with how attached it'd grown to Aya but Akio knew of no one better for the job than the Spirit that stuck to her like glue. "If it ever comes down to it, you've gotta protect her from anything that tries to harm her, alright? Including me."

Aurelius titled to the side, its confusion obvious, but Akio only petted it again before setting it back down next to Aya. For a moment longer, Aury held his sights on Akio before turning to Aya and curling its wings and tail around itself to go back to sleep.

There wouldn't be a point in trying to sleep for him though, and Akio knew this. So he stayed up instead, humming to himself a simple tune from his childhood in an attempt to forget, if just for the night, the remorse that ate away at him.

* * *

 ** _A/N:_**

 _Finally! I know it took longer than it usually does but I had to get some things straight in my head first before actually writing this one out. My head just cannot stop thinking about what's becoming a ship when it shouldn't! Aya and Akio were never supposed to be shipped! But the more, I write the more I can't help going down that road! AH! So...now you know what (mostly) kept me from finishing this chapter (-w- u) And you also know a little of what's going to await the two of them later in this story (and series!)._

 _Let's end it there for now and go on to thank some lovely people, shall we? Thank you to **Antex** , **oz-cocoa** , and **Aviantei** who keep wracking the reviews in for this story! I love hearing what you guys think and it gives me so much life and inspiration to keep writing! You all don't get how much I love you Have some hugs and cookies on me~_

 _Alright, that's all for now. I hope next chapter doesn't take as long to write ^^ Here's to hoping!  
\- **Evie**_


	14. Memoir XIV: To Protect What Matters

**Memoir XIV:**

 _To Protect What Matters_

* * *

El Dorado is peaceful without a crazed man demanding sacrifices every other second. And quite nice, actually. Three days here after all that happened reminds me well how much I miss this kind of peace. It reminds me of Wasteland of all things. Just the complete opposite in regards to color spectrum. Peace and quiet reminds me of people. Those I love, like Os and Ortensia. Haruka. Sora, Riku, and Kairi. Donald, Goofy, and Mickey. And those I miss too: Naminé, Roxas, Axel, and X—

"Hey."

Being shaken by his sudden call, I'm taken out of my daydream and look over my shoulder at Akio as he steps up to meet me halfway down the temple steps. Aury hovers close behind him; it's only when he notices me sitting there that he flies off to nuzzle against my cheek before taking his usual spot around my neck. Akio, much like my Dream Eater, takes a seat that's become much to synonymous with him, right by my side.

He stares out ahead of me at the boat that sits at the landing far below us. A magnificent vessel made in three days. I'll give Chief Tanni props. When he says he'll do something, he doesn't back down on his word, that's for sure.

"What a beauty, huh?" My words come out with the long sigh that leaves me as I lean forward with my elbows on my knees.

"...definitely."

"Can you believe they built it in three days?" When I turn to look though, Akio stammers a little as he looks away. My lips purse, finding his action and the slight tinting of his face odd. "You okay?"

"Y-Yeah." Clearing his throat, Akio mildly shakes his head before turning back to look at the boat below us. "Say, did you end up having any luck on your end?"

"None whatsoever." Being reminded of that brings a drawn out groan out of me. Despite wanting to enjoy the plentitude that this city of gold has to offer, we've had our work cut out for us this time around. These past three days Akio and I were given liberty by Chief Tanni to search the city in its entirety for the memory piece. But even after scouring every nook and cranny of this amazing city—of course, sometimes getting off track by the delicious food and fun around—we still had nothing to show for it. Aury wasn't reacting to anything at all and after all that searching we've been left back at square one.

"It doesn't make sense though." His mercurial eyes stray to the ground as he holds onto his chin pensively at our current predicament. "You said those portals hone down on the next memory, right? Are you sure that's how it works?"

Giving him a nod as a reply, my eyes wander over the city that is so easy to see from where we sit on the gods' temple. "That's what Yen Sid said anyway. One memory would lead me to the next, that one to the next, and so on and so forth. It's worked so far, so I'm sure it's here."

 _Just very well hidden._

" _Perhaps we should tread where others refuse to."_

Not liking Rinto's suggestion but knowing that was the only logical road left to take, I look over at the far off temple on the other side of the city. Despite being smaller, it's still an ominous, towering structure and one I've yet to search.

"And if it's anywhere, it'll be there."

Akio follows my line of sight and his gaze narrows at the temple before returning to me. "Really? The crazy priest's temple?"

"We've search everywhere else and found nothing. The only place we haven't is there." Chief Tanni strongly advised us to stay away from Tzekel-kan's temple claiming that he wouldn't want us to land ourselves in danger where he would have little power to intervene. But we don't need his protection. "I'll bet all the munny I have that it's there."

"Even if it is, I'd rather err on the side of caution. We can't just waltz in there and expect to find it right out of the bat."

"Maybe not," I say. "But we'll have to give it a shot."

This doesn't settle well with Akio but before he can argue any further, Miguel, making his way up the temple from inspecting the ship down below, calls out to us with a wave of his hand. Putting up a smile and returning the gesture, I stand up and nudge at Akio to do the same. Disgruntled as he may be, he gets up all the same and follows behind me as I make my way to the con man.

"How's the boat looking?"

Seeming a little bit too lost in his own thoughts, it takes Miguel a moment to answer with a meek smile on his face. "G-Good! It's great, actually. Fantastic craftsmanship." But that his voice trails off after that tags a certain air of hesitancy to his tone. Though I want to ask what the problem is, Miguel continues on climbing the stairs as he chatters on about having to let Tulio know about the progress. Exchanging a brief look with Akio is all I have time to do before we go after Miguel to catch up to his quickened pace. But as we reach the top of the stairs and are about to pass through the entrance, we're stopped by Miguel suddenly stopping in front of us. Curious at what made him stop, I try looking over his shoulder only to spot Tulio and Chel inside. Despite the urge to call ourselves out, something stops me at seeing them there. The moment looks too...private to interrupt. Nonetheless, I step aside to get a better look and be within earshot of what's being said.

And just from what I catch them bickering about, I immediately see that I wasn't wrong about this being private. "Uh, I want you to come to Spain with me and Miguel. Mostly me. Especially me. Only me. Forget Miguel."

"...oh shi—" Akio's hand instantly comes up to cover my mouth and keeps me from saying that too loudly. Frankly, though, I couldn't help myself from how outlandish this is. From what the guys told me back when they got us into this con, Chel was just another accomplice. Nothing more, nothing less. _Guess a lot changed in three days for Tulio._

He's not the only one either. Chel is pretty on board too. _Way_ too on board. So much so that seeing them lean into each other instantly ignites my face and I reach up to use Akio's hand to cover my eyes. Sadly that does nothing to block my ears from their kissing. From the sidelines, I manage to hear Altivo's hoofbeats as he strides over to the entrance. At seeing what we are, his jaw falls slack. _Same, buddy._

"'Forget Miguel'?" More somber than I've ever heard him speak, Miguel reaches over to tap Altivo's jaw back into place. Not bothering with us, he simply mutters under his breath as he turns to leave the temple again. "Well, forget Tulio."

At a loss for that brief moment, I'm stuck between watching Miguel and Altivo as they leave and Tulio and Chel inside the temple, trying to find some common ground now that there seems to be a divide forming. But I can't find any. Not even Akio seems to have anything. We're both left at a loss at what just transpired before us. Not wanting to be stuck here any longer than I've got to, I head down the stairs quickly as I can. Akio doesn't fall much behind and once we're in the city streets, it seems we can breathe a little easier without that tension hanging over us.

"Whatever happens between them shouldn't concern us, Aya."

I never intended to say anything about it. That didn't mean that what happened didn't unsettle me though. And it seems Akio's gotten the hang of some of my thought process to deduce at least that much. Knowing he's right but also not being able to get rid of this uneasiness carving its way in me at what happened leaves me at odds. Especially because this seems to hit a little closer to home than I gave it credit for at first.

"It's hard not to worry." Unconsciously, I rub at my arm as if trying to brush away how uncomfortable it makes me even thinking about this and what it reminds me of. "Friendships destroyed in the snap of one's fingers…I've seen it happen before. And I know how devastating that can be."

"...you have?"

Still reluctant to talk about it, I divert from the paved streets and leap down until I reach the small riverbank that connects to the rest of their water source. Crouching down before the lapping waters at the golden edge of the street, I peer down beyond them to try and focus on the peculiar animals swimming below. Strange fishes and crustaceans that I've never seen in other worlds peek through the crystal clear water, but as my focus wavers, I catch my reflection that's cast on the surface. Instead of the hazel eyes that I'm slowly growing accustomed to seeing, piercing red eyes shine through.

 _Rin…_

" _Though I apologize, I must also offer some clarifications, master,"_ she is quick to defend herself and sounds truthful about the real reason my eyes have turned without my wanting. _"It isn't uncommon for emotional triggers to activate us. And although with the burdens you carry from past actions, I expected this to happen, I am afraid I'm powerless to stop it. I am oath bound to obey whatever you command—consciously or otherwise."_

That she's just confirming what I didn't want to think about weighs heavily on me. I have my qualms about telling this to someone I've spent so little time with, but as things stand, I think he isn't half bad. Confiding in him actually sounds like a good idea for once. Heaving a sigh, I mentally prepare myself to recall all of it after almost a year of trying to forget for my heart's sake.

"Almost a year ago, a friend of mine got tangled into a mess that he couldn't get himself out of. He needed my help. And to help him, I infiltrated the very people that wanted to harm him." Wanting to give myself some distraction to dull the pain of this particular story, I tried for a better position and ended up laying face down on the floor near the back. Akio took to sitting beside me to better listen and wasn't too far away not to see what I was doing. One arm anchors me against the edge of the street while I reach down with the other to dip my fingers beneath the surface of the clear waters. Fishes scurry away, scared by my hands intruding into their home. "It was rather easy, you know. Back then, I had no control of my eyes and constantly lied. That I couldn't control them actually turned out to be for the better though. These people would've vanquished me had I been caught too early into the operation. But because of my eyes, I didn't and became a part of them."

After a second of not moving around, a couple of small guppies with strange and exotic markings and colors slowly approached my still hand. One almost the vibrant color of flames, another golden just like the city it lived in, and the last a black one that seemed to have some sort of camouflage, the markings on it changing color depending on how the light hit it. No matter what though it remained mostly dark. Those three swam closer to my hand and eventually began nibbling at the tips of my fingers.

"But as time went by, I...got too close to a few of them. One out of necessity, despite not knowing it at the time. The others out of happenstance alone. Despite being fully aware of what I was doing—that being as close as I was getting was wrong—I couldn't quiet my heart. I began to care for them and care about their well being. And, in the end, that undid everything; the things I had wanted to do to help my old friend, and the friendships I found with my new ones."

The moment I try brushing the fish with my fingers though, they scurry along far beyond where I can't see them. Grimacing at the coincidence, I let my hand simply lay in the water and just let its soothing waves comfort me instead.

"Did you end up helping him?"

"Yeah, but it cost me the friends I found in that place. They weren't all evil. In fact, the ones I knew only wanted back what they used to have. Something that belonged to them." _Despite not knowing that what they yearned for so much was something they already had._ "Others just wanted to live a peaceful existence beyond what the organization gave them. In the end, I lost them all. In-fighting took most of them out. Those closest to me, despite getting away from that chaos for awhile, disappeared all the same. One protecting us and, well…"

 _Seeing as I failed to stop Roxas myself, I have no one to blame on that front._

"What had separated us before all that, though, had been our lies to ourselves and to one another. And when it got found out that I had lied to them about who I was—" I scoff, bitterness and remorse filling me to the brim at the memory of what'd happened. "One called me a monster."

Even to this day I don't think Axel was wrong at saying that. Even if he apologized for it when he saved Sora and I, I never stopped thinking that about myself. Rinto and these eyes made me a monster for all those years that I couldn't control it. I hurt so many people. Lied to so many more. No decent person would do that.

"You're not a monster." That Akio says what I expect him to wrenches a dry chuckle out of my throat. "I don't believe so, anyway."

"I don't know, though," I respond, sitting up and wiping my hand against my pants. "Judging from all these people who've known the Rescuers and what they've said about them, I'm starting to think that he might not have been too far off the mark."

"But they're not you." My brow knitt together at his words and I turn up to meet his gaze that's now locked on mine the moment they meet. His silver eyes are piercing but dogged in equal parts. He's not kidding. "You said so yourself, didn't you? That no matter what they were or what you were meant to do because of them, that it wouldn't matter to you. That you're still going to do what you want to."

This time my chuckle isn't as downtrodden as before, his reminder of my own words relieving some of the tightness in my chest. "I did say that, didn't I?"

"You did, and I'm holding you to your word," Akio moves to lean one arm onto his knee and leans his chin on his hand to look off ahead. "Do whatever you want and forget all this stupid talk about monsters. Because you aren't one. If you were, this whole journey of yours wouldn't be for the sake of another."

Finding that part of his explanation oddly funny, my head tilts to better see him. "Your bar for what defines a 'monster' is quite low if it stops at being selfish."

"Sometimes that's all it takes: people doing things for selfish matters and not caring who they hurt."

"Certainly not a good quality in excess, I'll give you that much."

Finally, his eyes turn back to me as he says, "And you don't have an ounce of that in you."

A crooked grin upturns the corners of my lips at hearing him say that with so much confidence. "You barely know me."

"I could say the same thing to you and I know for a fact that you would still think I'm good regardless."

"Well, you're wrong about something 'cause I don't think so." Nudging him with my shoulder, my grin finally spreads from cheek to cheek. "I know so!"

With him having the last laugh at that, an airiness spreads around us and gets me laughing alongside him. It's rather relaxing and the last vestiges of that harrowing feeling brought on by those memories eventually leave by the time we're spent out from nonsensical laughter. The light-hearted atmosphere leaves him quickly enough as something comes to his mind. Before long, Akio takes a long drawn-out breath before sighing out through his nose.

"You really think it's in Tzekel-kan's temple?"

My gaze lifts towards the general direction of said temple and nod. "Only logical place left to look at."

"You better have a plan then."

My chest puffs with sureness at the on-the-spot idea I came up with and pat his shoulder to reassure him of that. "Don't sweat it, my friend. I've got it all figured out."

* * *

" _Master, I am not quite convinced about the chances of this plan of yours."_

 _Chill, Rinto._

Though I know where her concerns come from, I'd rather think positively about this instead. Especially with how cheeky this plan is.

" _I don't believe 'cheeky' quite embodies the idea of your 'plan'. Perhaps a few that would better suit it are presumptuous, audacious, brazen, imbeci—"_

"Alright, cut it out."

It's not really all that bad, in actuality. Rinto may be exaggerating a little too much on her part. Yes, perhaps the plan was a little on the risky side but Akio and I couldn't come up with much else with our time constraints. Besides, there wouldn't be any better time than tonight to do this. Miguel and Tulio's departure from the city meant a farewell celebration for the 'gods.' The whole city would be participating in it which meant that streets would be clear for me to easily go about unfettered. Seeing as I'm the better of the two at stealthing also prompted that I do this alone. It'd be way easier to sneak into the temple, search for the memory, and jump ship as soon as I got it by myself. And since that's what we decided on, Akio was left behind at the celebration to act as proxy bodyguard for the both of us. Nightmares, though not since the day we arrived to this world, are still very much an ever present threat and could attack anytime from anywhere. Knowing this, we knew it'd be better to leave someone behind to guard Miguel and Tulio and the rest of the city as well. Worried as I was of leaving Akio to fight alone, I left Aurelius alongside him in spite of how much that seemed to annoy said Spirit. Akio fought against that, saying I'd need him to find the memory but I disagreed. If that temple was the only place left, it had to be there. And that being the case, I could easily find it. Something would definitely look out of place like every other time it has. Our bases set, we had our plan for the night.

All of which brings me back to where I am now, climbing over the side of the Tzekel-kan's temple and trying not to slip onto my inevitable death below. Though I'd prefer to just climb the shadows as I hide myself with Rin, I'd rather not take the risk of falling from so high up. I still don't know how much more time I have left with it, if any, and right now may not be the best of times to test it out. So I take the safe road and do it the old fashioned way. Thankfully, I reach the top of it without much trouble and peer down while hiding with my masks.

It's dark but my eyes see well enough through it and spot Jaguar man stirring at some green goo pool with lots of ingredients strewn about him. Tzekel-kan isn't far off, pacing around and waiting, I assume, for Jaguar man to finish his concoction. Busy as they are with the Jaguar man serving some of whatever that green juice is on a bowl for Tzekel-kan, I take my chance to make my way down from the top of the temple. Grappling the wall to lower myself slowly works until my feet gently settle on solid ground once more. And since there is no such thing as too many precautions, I crouch down and fall back against the dark shadows while using my powers to their fullest. Carefully making my way to the stone slab not far from them brings me closer to the middle of the temple and from there it's a little easier to scan my surroundings.

There isn't much here in terms of furniture. Some shelves containing books is pretty much the extent of it. And aside from the slab I hide behind, there is only one other statue. A humongous ass jaguar across from the stone slab, ominously sitting there almost seeming a little too real in this darkness. _Forget it and look for that damn memory._ Listening to the sane part of my mind, I start scouring the vacant temple in an attempt to search from here.

The shattering of the bowl as it hits the ground jerks me out of my search and sets my nerves on edge. Turning back to the only other two here, Tzekel-kan takes out a book muttering something to himself. It's not until he closes it and walks behind the Jaguar man that he speaks loud enough to be heard.

"It needs more...body."

It's hard to keep myself from gasping when he just kicks the man in, but as soon as he does whatever they'd been making takes effect. A geyser forming distinct figures of greenish blue emerges out from the pool and strikes Tzekel-kan against the stone slab. I jump in my skin at the hit but only move away when that same color starts seeping through the stone's cracks. Leaping back, I watch as the energy from the pool slithers across the floor to the jaguar until it reaches its eyes. Though one of them remains that same green color, the other turns a familiar neon blue as cracks of that same color surge from the stone eye socket. From the crevices, the neon squirrel that we saw at Berk emerges as a dark black and blue shadow swirls around the blue eye before settling around it. It's not until a few seconds that I see a piece of something shining in its grasp.

 _Not, it's not holding it._

" _It's inside the eye."_

The stone slab suddenly falling forward makes me take some steps further back as it hits the floor and breaks right down the middle. But it takes very little of my attention as the jaguar statue comes to life mimicking Tzekel-kan's each and every movement, even the shudder of his shoulders as he cackles.

 _I have to warn the others._

Knowing what I have to do though is easier said than done. The moment I step back, the jaguar's head tilts back to look at me directly, the blue eyeball swirling with black, its makeshift pupil focusing on me. Tzekel-kan rises from the floor and turns to where I am. No, he shouldn't be able to see—

My eyes widen at the blue hue that lingers on the priest's eye matching the jaguar's. That Night Terror isn't just controlling the statue...he's got part of Tzekel-kan too. And if he does then—

A maniacal smirk spreads and shows the extent of his teeth as he stares directly at me. "It would seem we shall prey on vermin before the actual feast." With a nod of his head, he says, "Get the snake."

At his command, the jaguar instinctively lurches forward trying to grasp me in its stone claws. Gambling what control I could still have on shadows, I climb the shadows here trying to reach the exit above. Before I can, though, it charges again, this time breaking through the temple and taking me with it. The moonlight shining through gives me more stepping stools to work with but they don't matter much when those powers fail me and let my foot slip through nothingness. Tumbling down the best I can, I don't need to look back to know that jaguar's fast approaching. The thunderous roar that fills the air is enough to tell me that. My feet stumble down a few steps and when I'm close enough to the ground, I jump just as it lurches forward to land behind me. Taking a deep breath and putting a couple of fingers in my mouth, I whistle as hard as I can.

It's not hard to spot the bright gold figure that shoots through the sky than then dives towards me. Ecstatic that Aury heard me, my gait falters a bit at the spears that begin showering down on me from above. The spears the soldiers throw do nothing to the stone statue and all they're doing is bouncing off below to me. But as the people run and the jaguar leaps forward, it ignores me completely and instead goes for the nearest group of citizens and soldiers. It catches one, playing with it in its grasp like a feline would, but the moment it's sees Miguel and Tulio amongst the crowd its stops and drops them.

 _Tzekel-kan's after them._

"Miguel, Tulio. Run!"

Skidding to a stop and turning back, I don't hesitate to rush forward as the jaguar takes another step, its back paw hovering dangerously close to the bewildered soldier. A grunt leaves me as I launch forward and push him out of the jaguar's way, rolling to a stop safely.

"Ayano!" The flash of gold that flies above head dives in an instant before Aury lands in his Ryu Dragon form with Akio on his back. Not wasting a moment longer, I run to mount Aury and take Akio's place in front before urging him to follow after the jaguar that dashes out of the city.

"Aya, what is—"

"No time!" Avoiding the pieces of debris falling from the mountains as the jaguar continues his trek of destruction, Aurelius maneuvers through the hail of rocks, diving and dodging well enough before we catch sight of the jaguar chasing after the three on Altivo. We're also close enough that the Night Terror latched on the jaguar's eye peeking back at us is visible to me.

Not just me, though. "The damn squirrel?!"

"It's guarding the memory! It's inside the jaguar's eye!" Just as I finish saying that, portals above the jaguar's head open and without warning, Halbirds fly out with their blade-like wings brandished out as they race towards us.

Aurelius is quick to shoot out magic from his mouth and I'm not far behind. Picking Ares from my holsters and extending it as I do, I warn Akio to duck. The moment I feel him press against me to avoid what I'm about to do, I light the ends of Ares with Firaga and call out to Aury.

"Charge in, Aurelius!"

Instantly he takes up to the sky before diving at an angle with his wings tucked, gaining speed by the second. Taking the change, I twirl Ares around us, spreading the fire spell to create a blazing sphere that covers our front as we head straight into the Halbirds. Aury, without my noticing until after, sucks in some of that fire and aims at the Halbirds that are going too fast to stop themselves. Blinded by the flames and taken aback by the surprise shots of Firaga from Aury, we manage to somehow blow through the Nightmares together in one fell swoop.

Brandishing Ares out to extinguish the flames gives Aury a clear view ahead of us. Not far, lava's spewing from the ground with mounds of molten rock flying in the I'm quick to spur him on, he's faster in knowing what I want him to do and heads there before I have to say a word.

"The squirrel—" Gasps come from me as we make our way through the volcano, the heat being more than I can take after the flames I invoked earlier being so close to me. "—it's latched onto the eye."

A strange feeling I hadn't felt in a long while starts at my waist, taking more out of me than just my breath. It's not until I look down that I see it's Akio's hands enveloped in dark energy as the cause.

"Leave that to me," he grunts under his breath as we finally make it out of the volcano's reach and closer to where the jaguar is. He taps his hand against Aury's side and says louder than before, "Flip over when I tell you to!"

"Flip—what are you trying to do?!"

"No time, just hold on!" His left hands stays on my hip and squeezes to reassure me. All that does, though, is set my anxiety off even more. But knowing I don't have much of a say anymore, I do as he tells me and wrap my arms around Aurelious' neck as tightly as I possible can.

The moment we break through the thicket of jungle, Akio's voice bellows out overhead. "Now!" Aurelius doesn't hesitate and flips over. The change of position now leaves nothing beneath to break my fall against gravity's hold but as I hear Akio snarling behind me, I dare open my eyes just in time to see the world upside down. More importantly, though, is that I see Akio's arm beside me as he draws it back and punches down at the eye just below us. For a split second, the Night Terror's beady eyes widen before the jaguar's eye shatters from the hit. The Night Terror comes with it, flinging through the sky and towards the precipice of a cliff—the same sacrificial cliff from before with the rapid waters beneath.

Knowing the bigger threat here, I adjust myself as Aury flips back around and dives for the Night Terror. The neon blue Nightmare, stunned from the hit, free falls halfway through and regains conscious in time to get a blast from Aury straight in the face. A shriek fills the air as I turn Aury around for another hit. Getting Ares ready, I conjure another Firaga to strike it with. This time, though, it's more aware of what's happening and skids to a stop midair. Angling its tail our way, the neon blue flames surge forward, blazing even more than before as it takes my attack head on with it. Aurelius deviates away when the scorching heat raises to be too much to bare.

This time, it's not me who makes him turn around but Akio. And as Aury turns to charge at the Night Terror who's already preparing his next counterattack, he takes ahold of Ares, his hands resting just above mine, and angles it forward. From his hold, the dark energy seeps through, crawling along my staff until they reach the end were I still have Firaga conjured. The darkness seeps into the fire and transforms it into a darker flame with a white core. The heat from the small flame is so intense that I can't help but jerk back. Akio, though, holds me steady, his hands not letting go of Ares.

"One more time." He's so close that he doesn't need to speak any louder than a whisper. And I'm not about to back down now when he's putting his all into this too.

Giving the order to Aurelius, the Spirit charges forward at even higher speeds towards the Night Terror. Neon blue and ebony clash, flames spitting from either end and mingling together. Our hold doesn't waver and through the dark and bright blaze I can see the Nightmare as it adds fire from its cracked skull.

"We're not backing off either!"

All the energy I have left channels into Ares and strengthens my spell, making the darker flames burst brighter and hotter than its own. The blaze engulfs the Night Terror and within it, its head cracks further down its face and into one of its eyes. A hellish screech rings through the air and its so high-pitched that it makes my head hurt. I'm not the only one affected by it either. Akio's hold on Ares disappears as he reaches back to cover his ears and Aurelius inevitably begins to lose his balance. Holding onto the side of my head myself, I lift my gaze to see the Night Terror fall back against a portal that disappears too quickly for us to chase after. But that gets shoved to the back of my mind when loud cracking comes from above us. I only get a second to see as the stone jaguar falls, Tzekel-kan and part of the cliff crumbling along with it. Urging Aury awake, he struggles to dodge the incoming barrage of rubble that rains down on us. He ducks every which way to avoid them while I keep my eye on the jaguar as it falls to pieces with every hit it takes against the walls. It crumbles to pieces and the jaguar's eyes dislodges out from its head, pieces falling as what looks to be a golden medallion falls from it. I'm about to call it to Aury's attention when he lurches back as a piece of rubble hits his side. An angry yelp wrenches from his throat as he thrashes the pain away. And though I'm worried about him, it's nothing compared to my heart completely stopping at watching Akio fall from Aury's back to plunge fast towards the waters below.

In that moment, I don't think. I simply act.

Jumping off from Aury, I fall faster than I expected but that's good. It takes me no time to reach Akio in midair, wrapping my arms around him and bringing him closer to me. Through the terror rushing in my veins and the splitting pain blooming from the side of my head, I manage to whistle at Aury who's struggling to find us. Somewhat more lucid than before, he dives down and thankfully catches us in time before we can fall into the rapids. My feet just barely break through the surface before Aurelius takes to the sky higher and higher until landing on solid ground on what's left of the cliff.

Already, there's a crowd there waiting not just for us but for Miguel and Tulio; it's the whole of the city and they're ecstatic about seeing us all safe and sound after that attack. I have no idea how but they somehow managed to fend Tzekel-kan just like we did with the Night Terror and the crowd applauds their victory. I'm in no mood to celebrate anything yet though. As Aurelius lands, he lets us down onto the ground so it'll be easier for me to hold onto a stirring Akio. From the bit of blood matting the side of his head, I'm guessing some of the falling debris must've hit him on its way down. Thankfully, he wasn't unconscious for that long.

Silver eyes flutter open, trying to focus on anything they can find before settling on me. Though he tries to mutter something under his breath, I shush him and instead get Aury to lower himself. Akio isn't having any of it though and clutches at my forearms stopping me completely.

"The—the eye."

"It fell into the waters." For reason, saying it aloud doesn't bother me as much as I thought it would.

He winces— if from pain or from hearing that, I'm not quite sure—and his hold lessens until he's barely holding on anymore. With that being the case, it's much easier to bring him up onto Aury's back. But as I lay him down, I see something in his eyes that I hadn't seen before: remorse.

And it coats his voice, straining his throat as he croaks out a faint, "Why?"

This time, a genuine smile comes to me to reassure him of my words. "You're more important."

Akio doesn't say anything but even if he had, I doubt I would've heard him. Just then Chief Tanni's voice raises over the commotion and announces something that I don't quite understand. "Lord Miguel has decided to live among us!"

 _What?_

"Guess…" Akio stirs a little more, his vision straying off to the crowd as Aury gets to his feet to come to my side. I hadn't even noticed I'd moved forward, confused and bewildered at what had just been said. "Guess that's as far...as they'll be going."

Worry crawls onto me and I glance over my shoulder to Tulio and Chel who watch from afar as Miguel and the rest of El Dorado leave the cliffside. There isn't anything for me to do here. That much being clear, I call Aury to follow me and stay by his side while we carry Akio back into the city for treatment.

* * *

" _Are you alright, master?"_

 _I think so?_

It's a little hard to tell, frankly. Witnessing how easily they're breaking off this friendship of theirs hurts to watch. And here I thought that seeing Miguel torn before this had been a bad reminder. It didn't compare to now though. And this time brought with it those terrible memories from before again, bringing with them the hurt too.

"I know it must be hard to watch this."

Akio sits next to me at the edge of the boat's deck as we wait for Tulio and Chel, his head bandaged a little from his injury from last night. El Dorado has very advanced medicine though and it's helped him greatly to recover overnight. An almost expired potion on my part helped him gain his stamina back after the night's sleep better than he otherwise would've too. It could be a small reprieve. Compared to what's happening before us though, it's maybe bigger than that. For me at least.

"But this is their choice," he says, "it's not something we can change. No matter how it makes you feel."

The longest sigh ever leaves through my nose as Tulio reaches the landing of the temple with Miguel decked in customary garments of the city some feet away. Despite his choice to leave, the city still says their farewells, gratitude embedded into their embraces and words.

"I know."

He joins me with one last exhale before reassuringly squeezing my shoulder as he turns to stand on the inside of the boat. "Come on, we've gotta help get this thing out."

Right. After everyone calmed down the night before and I had some time to think about it, I realized that perhaps not everything was lost. That eye—it fell into the whirlpool where Itzel fell too. And being as there wasn't anything at the bottom of the rapids themselves—curtsey of our personal diving team in Aury as a Fishbone—it might very well be possible that that medal I saw in the eye of the jaguar ended where we found Itzel. Certainly, it's a better idea than giving up altogether. So at sharing this with Akio, we decided to depart with Tulio and Chel back into the outside where we'd part afterwards to trace back our steps.

We're busy helping to set off when Aury starts acting weird out of the blue. Relentless, he starts chomping down on my coattails, tugging on and on despite me swatting at him to leave me so I can work. It's not until I actually turn and take him by the tail and he starts flailing around, wings pointed outwards, that I see the trail of smoke rising in the air. Altivo's nickering gets Tulio's and Chel's attention to the same thing and somehow they, along with Miguel, seem to know exactly what's causing it.

"Cortes."

Akio narrows his eyes down on me as if asking me who that is. I don't even get to tell him that I have no idea when one of the gate guards comes to Chief Tanni with horrible news. Strangers, an army of them, led by Tzekel-kan. Tannabok loses no time and rallies his troops but by the sound of gunfire going off in the distance, I don't think they're well-equipped to fight them.

 _They'll just walk into their deaths._

"Chief!" The crack in Tulio's voice leaves him as he clears his throat, raising a golden cup of water at the Chief and Miguel. "Chief. I've got a plan."

They gather together just outside the boat and Akio and I linger above them on deck to listen in on the plan. And the more Tulio details it, the more my mind whirls thinking about just how absurd it sounds.

"This is crazy." Akio's sentiment mirrors mine but the lopsided smirk I give him tells the other half of my thoughts.

"So crazy it might just work."

There's no time tp waste and everybody gets to work to deploy Tulio's plan. The guardsmen and Chief Tanni prep the water tower, ropes flying through the air as they're tossed down below to the rest of the guardsmen while others prepare to break down the pillars on command. Knowing they'll need more help here than on the boat, Akio and I stay back with Aurelius. The Spirit, in his Kooma Panda form, lays in wait with the guards stationed at the pillars, ready to dish out an attack of his own to topple them over. Akio stays at the edge nearest to the river while I accompany Chief Tanni. We've no qualms about staying behind if we have to but because we'll be the failsafe to stop the army in case this plan doesn't fully work, we have to get out alongside Tulio and Chel to see their plan through. Our window is small—we have to be on that boat before the water tank takes it out into the tunnel, but our help is needed here too.

 _I hate multitasking._

" _But you're good at it, master. Let us focus on that and see this through."_

Right.

"Okay, Chief, on my signal!" Everybody tenses up as we ready for what's to come. I grab a few ropes of my own to help however I can while below me, Aury winds up his attack ready to deliver it on command. It's then that Tulio gives the signal, lowering his arm down. "Ready? Hit the pillars!"

The weight of such massive thing falling almost takes me forward with it but I try my best to hold steady as its foundation breaks beneath it. Something's not right though. The boat's not going fast enough. As if sensing this Chief Tanni reacts, quickly grabbing onto as many ropes as he can to stop it from falling. Seeing this, I call out to Aurelius who's quick to do the same as the chief, taking mine and several others to haul them back. And though they manage to slow down the tower, it's still falling.

And without Aury to flies us to it, we might not make it to the boat in time. My stomach twists to a knot at seeing this same realization in Akio's eyes as we both turn to each other. If we want to make it on that boat, we have to get on.

 _Now._

The moment he sprints forward I do the same, leaping off from the ledge and over the log they used to break the pillars to reach the edge. The clacking of hoofbeats dashing past us alerts us to Miguel as he rides Altivo to reach the boat. Spotting our chance, I take the jump onto the horse and give Akio my hand as we both haphazardly climb onto Altivo. To my amazement, the horse doesn't slow down. Instead he speeds up and takes the leap onto the boat without hesitation. Once I see it beneath us, I bellow out at Akio to jump and he thankfully listens, both of us managing to land safely on the hard wooden floor of the boat below. But as a shadow passes overhead, we're astounded to see Miguel almost flying through the air to break the sail free from its confines. The moment it opens, the wind takes care of speeding us up and out of the way of the basin.

Miguel gives Chief Tanni a gesture and he must have let go because the water tower comes onto us fast afterwards, its contents spilling over as it does. "Aurelius!" My cry must've traveled over the thrashing water because almost immediately after, I see the flash of gold fly into the air before diving head first to us. It takes my jumping a little to catch the fast ball coming at my arms. I settle him on my neck fast enough to hold on as the boat lurches forward from the water gushing through.

The boat rises almost too close to the tunnel's ceiling, just barely squeezing through with only the sail as collateral. Inside the dark caverns, though, the boat is led through by the speeding waters and crashes from wall to wall as it goes. At times, cries and neighs reach my ears as stalactites crash against the mountains of gold inside, clattering loudly and adding to the cacophony.

"We're going to have to hit it broadside!" Hearing that, Akio and I take to the side where Chel and Miguel are to grab onto oars and help them turn the boat on its side.

"That's your plan? But the gold!"

"I know." I stumble on my a feet a little as Tulio struggles to keep the boat steady. "Just turn the boat!" Somehow we manage to do that and just as we're to hit the pillars, Tulio calls out, "On impact, everybody jump!"

Eyes wide and breath hitching, I hold Aurelius against me as tight as I can as the boat nears the pillars. Though I jump, there doesn't seem to be a need to. The sheer force of the impact sends us flying out and into the freezing waters below. The rapids are fast enough to take us for a ride even as we surface to catch out breath. Spotting dark maroon locks, I try but can't reach Akio before the waters rushing through burst out of the caves.

I don't know how but I somehow survive that. I'm not the only one judging from the coughing a hacking going around. But before we can even celebrate, Chel grabs our attention telling us to hide. Following behind Altivo, Akio and I hide behind a large pile of boulders as well enough as we can from view. It's when I hear the multitude of footsteps that I gamble a peek while using my masks to hide. The massive army led by an imposing man that simply oozes malice doesn't seem to spot me, but I watch intently every second of what happens when they see the entrance destroyed, deeming Tzekel-kan a liar and denying any credability to the 'myth' of the city of gold.

A small sigh of relief escapes me at hearing that but as they take Tzekel-kan away, I dare have my last laugh. Undoing my masks, I wink and blow him a cheeky kiss before waving. And oh, how sweet it is to hear him scream in agony at him getting his comeuppance.

 _Ah, how sweet justice sounds._

"Well," I look over to Akio as he stands up while the other three come out of hiding. "Guess that means we're good to go then."

"Yep."

Altivo's neighing gets our attention as Chel takes front seat with Tulio and Miguel behind. She turns the horse to face us ands tilts her head to say, "Thank you, to the both of you, for helping us."

"No problem!" Jumping up to stand and not minding my soaked clothes, we come up to them on their mounted stead. "You guys have fun on your journey!"

"You can bet on that," Miguel says with a snicker.

"Or we would if we had that beautiful, precious—"

Chel's chuckle interrupts him as she pats back at his leg. "There, there." Her gaze then turns up to look, not at me, but past me at Akio and smiles. "You two take care of yourselves."

"You too." That he answers so readily doesn't sit well with me for some reason but I let it slide as Chel cries out of the blue.

"Alright, boys!" Chel lavishes in her joy of having survived all that and raises her arm overhead before pointing out to the horizon. "Let's follow that trail! Hyah!" Without warning she gets Altivo on his hinds legs before dashing on knocking both Miguel and Tulio off the horse. Laughter bubbles from me as the two run after Altivo and Chel with her laughing just as hard as I am.

Soon enough there's nothing else for us to see as they disappear beyond the hill and I smile knowing, somehow, that if they're together, they'll be alright. With that peace of mind, I turn to Akio and smack him on the arm before sprinting off in the general direction I remember from a few days ago.

"Come on! We've got our own treasure to find!"

* * *

"He's taking too long."

"He's looking for it."

"He's taking too damn long, Aya."

My cheeks puff up at Akio's complaining as we wait by the pond's edge. Knowing that it'd be easier for Aury to dive for it as a Fishbone, we let him do it, but that Mr. Impatience here isn't giving him the benefit of the doubt is starting to majorly piss me off.

"Well, you could always go dive for it yourself, you know." Despite scoffing at the suggestion, he sits back and doesn't say anything in response. _That's what I thought._

Just then, the surface of the water breaks as Aurelius shoots out from below and falls before us, flailing as something bulges from his jaw. Even as he turns back to normal, the bright golden sphere that gives off tiny sparks remains lodged in his jaw. The medallion I remember seeing before sits neatly inside and when I reach my hand out for him, Aurelius unhinges his jaw to let it fall in my open palm. It's smooth and cold against my skin but the moment I brush my fingers against it, it cracks. Before I have time to say anything, it shatters completely, leaving the medallion in my hand.

This isn't something I've seen before. Most of the relics holding Ayano's memories have been possessions that had at some point in time belonged to Thea. But this? It's just some old, scratched, gold medallion.

"...that insignia." When I turn to him, Akio seems lost in his thoughts as he holds his chin with one hand. His brow furrows for a moment longer before he looks up and, out of the blue, snatches Aury by the tail. The Spirit thrashes at being handled so roughly and though I want to tell him to stop, what he immediately points out takes my attention more. "It's the same one."

I barely get a chance to compare them before Aury takes the whole thing into his mouth, swiveling it in his mouth for a second before spitting it out. Luckily, Akio reacts faster than me and gets a handful of drool on his hand. Also a medal. While Akio busies himself with cleaning the medallion and his hand, Aury opens another doorway and goes straight through without waiting for us. Following his lead, I take Akio by the arm and drag him through myself.

Once through, we fall down onto an all too familiar pane of glass. Though the sudden pressure on my chest makes it hard to catch my breath, I force myself to but can't help closing my eyes as I do so. The moment I open them, I'm no longer in the dark. I'm not even falling.

Instead, I'm in what looks to be a plaza near a bed of flowers. Crouching down before it, my hands reach out and pluck some of them from out of the ground. A few orange ones, some pink, and some purple. Every color there is soon comes to be part of the small bouquet I have at hand. Maybe Kairi would like some. It'd certainly give me an excuse to go visit her now that she lives away from the castle and with her grandmother now. And when they come to mind too, I think Haruka and Ienzo could probably use some pretty flowers in their day. If anything, Haruka's new little sister would certainly like them. From what I recall hearing, she likes pink. Mindlessly, I go on and pick away, adding more pink ones for both that little girl and Kairi. Once satisfied with my collection, I get up and turn only to find two people before me. Though I've seen them before, it's incredible how much these two kids look like Axel and Saix.

" _Hey,"_ the Axel look-alike says, stretching out his hand, _"You're that kid from the castle, aren't you?"_

Though I find that odd, a part of me also doesn't. Having been homeschooled most of my life, and even more so after mother's passing, I've been pretty set apart from the rest of the city. It makes me wonder how many of them, if any, know what I look like or who I am. A curious thought now that I think more about it, seeing as I'm their leader's daughter.

 _No, I'm not._

Consciously ripping myself apart from the other Ayano, I manage to find some distance and finally see her as she is. Not as myself but as a part of me. Her dark brown hair, long and straight, falls braided to one side and large blue eyes look at Axel and Isa before coming back to Axel and cautiously shaking his hand.

Axel smiles, shaking her hand a little too hard. Or at least rough enough for Saix to see it and call it to his attention. _"Stop before you rip her arm off."_ Axel let's go with a soft 'sorry' before Saix continues. _"Sorry about that. This mindless brute here is Lea. And my name's Isa."_

 _That name.._. Because I haven't really consciously brought any of those memories to mind until recently, it takes me a moment to realize why that name sounded so familiar. I called Saix that name before. And when I did, both him and Axel reacted to it obviously shocked and somewhat disturbed at me knowing it. Now, I know how that came to be in my head. _Ayano knew them._

She eyes them for a moment longer before nodding. _"I remember you two. Dilan and Aeleus always complain about a couple of kids who keep trying to break into the castle. I saw you once trying to do that."_

Hearing this, Axel— _Lea, I guess_ —flinches and averts his gaze, more than likely embarrassed at being found out. Isa, though, doesn't lose his impassive expression but doesn't say anything either. It's not until Lea gets his composure back that things lighten up a little.

" _W-Well, sorry about that. Your house's just interesting is all. And you're too."_

Blinking at this, she hangs her face but it's quite obvious that she's take aback by the comment. From what I could tell of her emotions flooding into my head, she wasn't too social. Ansem must've not allowed her out of the castle much after Thea passed away. Trying to protect her maybe? Well, regardless of that, having her be so sheltered from the rest of the world didn't seem prudent. It certainly didn't give her much in the 'people skills' department.

 _Not like I'm one to talk._

Finally, Ayano lifts her gaze and looks at them both in turn before introducing herself. _"I'm Ayano. I didn't think...that a lot of people knew about me though."_

" _Certainly didn't until recently. You know with the fune—I mean, well..."_ Lea rubs the back of his head sheepishly before looking away defeated. _"We just wanted to say that we're sorry about what happened to your mom."_

Heaving a long sigh, she nods. _"Me too."_

" _There were so many rumors going around about what happened,"_ Isa doesn't seem to be bothered by the awkwardness of the topic all that much. His eyes do flit around a couple of times when it comes to be a little too much but eventually settle back on her. _"Do you know anything about them?"_

" _Frankly, I wouldn't,"_ she says as she balances her weight on her heels. _"Nobody wants to tell me anything about what happened. No matter how many times I ask."_ It's the truth. I don't need to look at her to know that.

" _We don't mean to bring you down. We really don't."_ Lea comes closer along with Isa and he places a hand on her shoulder. _"It's just that, when we saw you that day alone with no one but your siblings, well...we felt bad."_

" _Thank you for your honesty."_ By the sound of it, she wasn't getting any of that as of late. Though hurt, her voice did, in fact, sound grateful.

" _It's kinda more than our honesty, though."_ When Lea says this, Ayano looks up perplexed at him.

It takes Isa explaining what he meant for her to get it at last. _"What my dimwitted friend is trying to say is that, if you'd let us, we'd like to be friends with you."_

" _...friends?"_

" _Yeah!"_ Lea instantly perks up at the sound of that before stretching his hand out once more. This time to ask the question once more. _"What do ya say, Aya? Want to be friends?"_

"You knew them?"

Hearing Akio's voice so calmly ask that finally brings me completely out of the memory. I still watch, though, my attention rapt on the trio as Ayano shakes hands with Lea and then with Isa. "I sort of knew them. Remember what I said about the friends I met when I infiltrated that organization I told you about?" A nod is all I need as a response. My hand rises and I point at Lea as the three of them start chatting and he points out to a nearby candy store. "Though I don't know for a fact, I'm almost certain that his Nobody, Axel, is one of those few I befriended. He's the one that—" My lips pursed at the reminder.

Seeing my discomfort but still wanting to know, Akio asks, "What?"

"He's the one that called me a monster."

My words are like blades that pierce the pane of glass below. But instead of shattering, it only cracks. The spider cracks that spread shift the image shown into black and when they reforge back to a whole pane, we're no longer in that plaza from before. Instead, we're now in a place that I've never seen before in my life. A grand chamber forms before our eyes; circular in shape, it's maybe not as big as, say, how I remember the ballroom from Dark Beauty's castle in Wasteland being but the way its built and decorated makes it appear just as grand, if not more. As it takes shape we're left at the top landing of stairs that lead down to a platform below. That platform is separated from the walls of the room by a pathway surrounding it; said walls are littered with drawings that I can't decipher. They're too convoluted to make anything out of them and the memory we're in isn't allowing us that much of a view either. Much of everything in these chambers is blurry except for the platform below us.

Beside me, Akio's brow furrows, seemingly bewildered at what he's seeing and before I can ask what the matter is, he descends the steps. Finding this odd, I trot after him to catch up and we both reach the landing below together, our footsteps echoing through the place funnily enough. Statues stand guard of the platform, towering above us and almost scraping the ceiling. There's five of them—knights, I think—and each faces in, broadswords in hand piercing the floor as they make a cirlce around the lower platform. Though the front of them looks like the kind of armor knights use, their backs are flattened walls, each with more intricate drawings that I can't understand. A smaller dais lays within, just barely a couple of inches above the floor, with distinct markings decorating the floor and spreading outward to the knights standing guard. Though they're blurry, I can sort of make out that each knight, though seemingly almost identical, has peculiar patterns with their helmets being the most distinct. Akio walks up to the dais, taking his time to thoroughly observe our location. Coming up to him, my attention is rapt on him instead with a question that has grown over the few seconds of being here.

"You know this place."

It's not a question. And he doesn't take it as one.

"It's home." Scoffing at the word, he finally lowers his gaze to focus on the ground beneath him. "Or at least part of what became my home after Radiant Garden disappeared. It's one of the chambers in the Sanctuary."

 _Sacntuary?_ I vaguely remember him saying something about such a place back in Traverse Town when he and Riku were talking. "Where is this sanctuary?"

"I don't know." His sardonic tone changes as he sees my pouting, annoyed at his vague ass answer. "I really don't. Cordelia guided me here when I was little. Said that it's a shifting pocket of space and that I'd be safe here. Locating it is hard for those who know it exists and almost impossible for those who don't."

"So this...isn't a world?"

"It's kind of misleading to define it as a world." Turning to the side, he points out to one of the many murals decorating the far off walls outside of the dais. I still see nothing but blurring colors that swim through my vision when I glance over but he seems to be able to see them fine. "From what I understood, it's a pocket dimension of sorts. To think of it as a moving island could make it easier to understand. But it's anchored somewhere too, a place it keeps returning to every so often."

"What place?"

"Some sort of town; a deserted one from what I read. Every time it anchors, it remains for a whole day and then drifts off again." His brow furrows then as his gaze itself drifts off to look at each mural on the outside. "From what those murals say, this is the sanctuary that harbored those who escaped the world's end."

Now it's my turn to be worried about where this conversation is heading. "What happened to it?"

Akio shakes his head and finally meets my eyes again. "That part was too decayed to decipher anything from. Anything past the war is unintelligible, really."

"War—"

" _ **This is unbelievable! Utterly unbelievable!"**_

Both of us jump at the voice that booms through the room, shaking my whole body with its intensity. But once I can process what I heard, I realize that it wasn't even an adult talking. It'd been a young kid's voice, a boy. The vision cracks but surprisingly doesn't break. Whatever's going on though causes them to crack further little by little. Through what looks like a broken screen, new figures appear layered on top of the sanctuary, their bodies breaking in and out of shape. What confuses me the most is that they're not made of golden dust like most memories. They don't change in shape like sand swaying back and forth. Instead they flicker, like a faulty connection resulting in static.

The boy that scared us flickers in and out of view until he more or less retains his shape. Unlike the rest of the memory, he's something I can see clearly after his image settles. Sandy blond hair, messily cut with strands framing bright aquamarine eyes. It takes me a moment, but I do recognize where I've seen him before. As does Rinto.

" _That's the boy—"_

"He took me through Radiant Garden."

Though Akio raises his voice to ask me what I mean, it's a whisper compared to the booming noise of the boy as he speaks up again. _**"How is it that none of them has stopped this? How have they allow us to come to the edge of waging war against our own kin and not try stopping it?"**_

" _ **Calm down, Roland."**_

It's fairly easy to recognize Cordelia's voice as her static figure finds stability in the cracks. The boy, Roland, steps forward from the shadow of the knight with a leopard helmet to frown up at her. Despite their age disparity, Cordelia doesn't disregard him and instead addresses his qualms. _**"Our leaders have their own tasks to handle. Greater ones bestowed to them by the master that must be given the utmost priority."**_

" _ **Well, we have our own duties aside from our obligations to our Unions too and we manage both just fine! All they ever had to do was guide us and they have managed to somehow ruined that!"**_ Finally boiling over, Roland let's out an exacerbated groan that contrasts greatly with her calm demeanor. _ **"I knew I never trusted them to be master's substitutes for a reason. He must've been out of his mind when picking them for the job!"**_

" _ **Being paragons to hundreds upon hundreds of wielders is no easy job, lil' Ro."**_ Despite only having heard him the one time in Traverse Town, I recognize Teobaldo's voice but I'm not ready for the figure I see appear. From just looking at him, he seems maybe a year or two older than Akio. Definitely taller. Long scarlet hair is plaited from one side of his head to the other and laid over his shoulder. He's playing with the strands at the end of the braid as he languidly leans against the front of the knight with a serpent helmet, jade eyes veering before returning to Roland. _**"Ours are rather simple compared to that, really. Besides, whatever mission the master gave them is of no concern to us. We have our own and must see it through. For everybody's sake."**_

" _ **Teobaldo is right, Roland,"**_ Cordelia agrees without missing a beat. _**"Perhaps the Union leaders have begun to falter but that is why we are here, to aid them in such trying times. And you would do well to hold your tongue. Say what you will about them but I will not allow you to question the Master too."**_

" _ **Maybe asking questions is exactly what we should be doing."**_

Before Roland can even say anything, another voice rises and this time it comes from somewhere higher than the rest. A sweet and tranquil voice of a young child, a girl, makes me turn up to one of the knight's, the one with the helmet resembling a fox, and see her figure stabilize into shape to show her seated on the hands of the statue. Light blue hair, almost white in the pale light of the chamber, curls to lay over one side of her shoulder with white lilies behind her ear whose vines tie around her hair. Stormy gray eyes blink down on them as a small cat-like plush adjusts in her hold. No, not a plush. That cat's ears moved.

 _The thing's alive._

Cordelia lets out an indignant huff, arms crossing over her chest as it heaved trying to find words to reply to that. But finding none sent her pacing back to one of the knight statues, this one with a helmet of a unicorn. Finally she turns back to the girl, her cheeks flushed in slight anger. _**"Don't be preposterous, Magnolia. Questioning the master like that—he selected Master Ira and the others for this because he knew they were the best for the task."**_

" _ **Or because he knew they wouldn't disobey,"**_ Roland adds, his tone turning rather acerbic. _**"Must be where Master Ira got the idea to pick you by the look of it."**_

" _ **How dare you, Roland!"**_

" _ **I may just agree with you and Maggie on something, Ro,"**_ Teobaldo steps up with a smug smirk on his lips. _**"Perhaps some choices were made in rather poor judgement. After all, Master Gula and Ava made the mistake of choosing you kids as their representatives."**_

Magnolia ignored the bait Teobaldo laid out for them but Roland, too furious at the insinuation, shouted with a lip upturned threatening to become a snarl. _**"What did you say—"**_

" _ **I think that's as far as this argument will go."**_

A mighty roar cuts Roland off mid sentence and both step away from the dais as a golden Ryu Dragon drops from the open ceiling letting light spill from outside. One glance is all I need to recognize Aurelius as he flickers in and out of view. My hand reaches up to my neck only to reassure myself that the real Aury is here with me. But despite this, the fact that he's an ancient dream and one who's been in league with the Rescuers settles slowly. The Auerlius from this memory growls deep in his throat at both Teobaldo and Roland until they back away from each other, giving themselves space. Magnolia stays seated, soothingly petting her cat who seems alarmed by Aurelius' sudden appearance. Cordelia, as well, seems more irritated at its sudden appearance rather than intimidated. Veering her attention to the statue of the knight with a bear helmet, her charcoal eyes narrow as a figure vaults down from the ceiling, using the statue to reach the ground and stand before them all.

A girl probably my age stands with the most aloof expression I've ever seen on someone. Not even the old Riku's stoicism rivals the blatant emptiness coming from her honey-colored eyes. Volumninous waves of grayish white hair cascade from her ponytail, a short fringe comes over her forehead with a couple of much longer strands hanging over her shoulders. Her skin is pale as can be, almost a sickly color that just doesn't seem right. Bandages peek out from beneath her clothes on her arms, legs, and even neck leaving me quite uneasy from the sight of that.

" _ **Oh, have you finally decided to grace us with your presence, Emelia?"**_ There's no missing just how pissed off Cordelia is simply by the way she spits out the name.

" _ **Don't be like that, Cordi."**_ Despite the blase tone of her voice, the small smile that tugs at her lips does reach her eyes curiously enough. She gives herself a second to reach her hand out to the static Aurelius who morphs back into the same small ball that sits around my shoulder. And just like he is right now, he goes to wrap around her neck and nestle against it.

" _ **Though I'm not fond of it, I have to agree with Cordelia on this, Emma."**_ From her perch on the statue, Magnolia leaps down, the skirt of her clothes puffing up with air and letting her hover safely to the ground. Her feet patter on the floor softly as she lands before turning up her gray eyes up to meet Emma's. _**"You've been missing for weeks now, not answering any of our summons or the masters'. Where have you been?"**_

" _ **Searching."**_

" _ **Searching for what?"**_ Roland asks.

" _ **The master."**_ Finally letting some sort of emotion show, Emma averts her gaze to stare at the ground as melancholy etches on her features and brings some light to her lifeless eyes. _**"I know you all have been worried as of late, especially with the Unions fighting more than ever over gathering light. I thought that looking for him to assure us would be good. But with the coming war, I had a hunch this would happen so I decided to call off my search and return instead."**_

" _ **Was it really a hunch or did you foresee it?"**_

Emma doesn't answer Teobaldo's question and instead looks at each one in turn starting with him. The intensity of her gaze gives away just who exactly is in charge of the five of them and it grounds me even with how her gaze flickers back and forth. _**"I know you are restless with what's happening. And I will not lie to you, this is not normal. And it will most certainly end in war."**_

" _ **Then shouldn't we do everything we can to stop it?"**_

" _ **It's not that simple, Ro."**_ Despite dissenting the boy, a kind warmth comes to her eyes to replace the sorrow from before. _**"Maintaining the balance is what the Master taught me. It's what he taught you and the masters he left behind. And it is also why they're urging us to gather more light. To counter the amalgamation of darkness. They**_ **are** _ **trying to stop it, Roland, in their own kind of way. I'm sure you have seen the discourse between the masters already as well. It stems from the same place, from worrying that what they're doing isn't enough."**_

" _ **Then what**_ **can** _ **we do to help them?"**_ Magnolia asks, stepping closer and genuinely curious.

" _ **The only thing we can do, Maggie: give them time."**_

One of Teobaldo's fine eyebrows raises at hearing this and he comes closer to where Emma is. _**"Wind back the perpetual clock by balancing the scales back in our favor. Is that your version of 'giving them time'?"**_

" _ **Essentially."**_

" _ **What do you mean by 'wind back'?"**_ Roland hesitates briefly before tumultously taking that step forward along with the rest.

Crossing her arms over her chest and sighing defeatedly, Cordelia takes the few steps to join them. _**"She means to revert as many of those who've been swallowed by the Abysmal back in order to counter the light needed to keep the balance of the worlds."**_ At saying that, though, she lifts her gaze to meet Emma's with a mindful eye. _**"But to do what you propose—lessening the amount of light the rest of the wielders have to gather by lessening the darkness opposing us—we would have to reverse hundreds...even thousands more than we currently are."**_

" _ **More or less."**_

" _ **That's a hell of a disadvantage, don't you think? Five of us against the millions turning every second of every day."**_ Teobaldo doesn't seem to like those odds but Emma has an answer ready for him as she smiles.

" _ **No. Ever since we were picked, it has been us against the world. Us against the darkness that threatens our friends. It's always been us and we have always been capable of doing what we had to."**_ She turns to them then and reaches out her hands to those closest to her. Teobaldo and Roland smile after a pause and take her hand in theirs before reaching for the others. While Maggie takes Roland's and Cordelia takes Teobaldo's, they share a similar smile and close the circle by holding one another. _**"They may never know or be grateful about what we do, but our vow wasn't made with the intent to gain such things."**_

" _ **We guide the lost."**_

" _ **Liberate the imprisoned."**_

" _ **Find the light in the darkness."**_

" _ **And save those who can't save themselves."**_

They each recite along with her what seems like an oath they know by heart. Hearing it, makes Emma's eyes brighten and a genuine smile to come to her lips.

" _ **And when all is lost, we carry the burden of our brethrens' hopes and dreams within us. It is them who empower us and so, for them, we fight. Our oath to the master, to those who succeed him, to the other wielders, and most importantly to ourselves is to always believe in the light."**_

"...because light will exist even in the darkest abyss. All we have to do to see it is believe it's there."

A glint of light shines through as the pane of glass cracks under the feather-light weight of my words seconds before shattering completely. Thankfully, nothing disturbs us this time around and we safely land in the midst of nothing but darkness, except for the doorways before us. Five explored and one other empty frame waiting for us next to the one that led us to El Dorado.

Though I'm not sure about my logic, if Sora and Riku are traveling to awake seven sleeping worlds like Yen Sid said, then this next one should be the last to go. Wasteland, Traverse Town, Cite de Cloches, Berk, the Land of the Guardians, the City of Gold, and this last one will make seven. _I've got one last chance to figure out how to save Haruka._ And if everything goes south here, I'll at least have a clue to go on with Teobaldo commanding the Night Terrors of which Haru's darkness is a part of. Not everything is lost yet.

The atmosphere around us is heavy but that's no surprise after what we saw. It pertained to neither of us directly but it certainly gave us some sense of what those Rescuers were like. Especially in the havoc they lived in days before this so-called war, and also who exactly kept them together in such crisis.

"I'll say, it's rather fitting that you're Emma's successor." I'm taken somewhat aback by Akio's words and it seems that my expression gives that away quite easily. One side of his lips turns upward in a half smirk as his mercurial eyes meet mine. " From what little we saw I'd say you two are very alike. You're both cryptic at first glance but rather simplistic and hopeful inside. Much like a child."

"You calling me a kid?"

He gives me a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. "Mostly in a good way."

"What's the 'not good' part?"

"That you don't give much thought to what you do and end up putting yourself in harm's way more often than not." Though I pout at his explanation, he brushes it off with a chuckle before reaching over to pet Aurelius. "But I guess that just means we have our work cut out for us. Isn't that right, Aury."

Aurelius huffs, not scornfully but rather appreciatively as he leans into Akio's hand. Once done, Akio points out to the door and Aury is fast to respond, undoing himself from around my neck and flying over to the last empty doorway. The small sphere of light that comes from his open mouth hovers over to it, disappearing in a blink of an eye into the doorway. Once inside, the sigil changes into that of an open book with a blue glow coming from it. Approaching it, I feel the gust of wind coming from the other side and taste the saltiness of the sea. Reminds me too much of the few times I've been to Destiny Islands to not remember that smell.

"Aya?"

"I'm good." Taking a deep breath at his calling me, I share a small smile with him before nodding on towards the door. "We should get going."

All he does is nod in agreement before urging me forward by the small of my back and through the doorway that leads to this new strange sea.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_

 _Finally done! The last weeks of October were a hectic pair but I came out of them for the better! Got done with applications (most of them anyway) and that just relieved so much stress that has been on my back since freaking July. But it's done and it's a long one to boot :D_

 _Lots of things happened in this one, things that pertain to a mini side-story that I might or might not write later once I finish this one. Thank you to all of you who read and to_ _ **Antex**_ _for the review! You're the best~_

 _I'll keep things short for this one! Other wips are calling me and they certainly won't write themselves ;3 Hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you stayed tuned for the next update! Have a lovely night/day~_

 **-** _ **Evie**_


	15. Memoir XV: Scapegoat

**Memoir XV:**

Scapegoat

* * *

Teobaldo stroked the Night Terror's cracked head to soothe it. It purred contently, it's weak blue embers growing and shrinking in tandem with the rise and fall of its chest. It's tail curled around its body as it nestled against Teobaldo's lap, his other nightmares keeping a close eye on their beaten brother. Teobaldo paid them no mind however;he only stared down at his broken nightmare as it recovered in its slumber.

Ayano and Akio had done a number on it to be sure. Poor thing would take some time to recover. But it wouldn't have it. The promised time was fast approaching. Soon the boy would reach his destination and they would have a thirteenth vessel. And with him helping deliver the Keyblade wielder to his destiny, he would have kept the end of his bargain. And it would be their turn to respond in kind.

" _What do you wish in exchange?"_

" _Erasure."_

Rescuers, purgers—the name didn't matter. Teobaldo experienced the kind of harm they could unleash unattended. They didn't maintain the balance like their master had wanted them to. All they ever accomplish was bent it past the breaking point. There was no way to attain balance anymore from the scraps left over. A new clean slate would be needed.

And they couldn't be allowed to exist in it after it came to be.

Teobaldo scanned the room and each of his Night Terrors in turn-his collection. A proof of the centuries spent searching and taming their souls. Of years spent chasing after their lingering wills to gather them. The old brigade as well as the new. So many deals struck, so much time invested and all to await the day he could finally destroy them all.

And just when all the pieces were finally coming into their rightful place, his pawn decided to grow a heart and disrupt it all.

Teobaldo grinded his teeth. For as disposable as he was, Akio had his uses but he was starting to wear down on his patience. Teobaldo should've known better than to trust that something like this wouldn't happen. Perhaps thinking that Ayano's influence wouldn't be large enough to disrupt Akio's seemingly unwavering heart was too much to hope for. Thinking back on it, it didn't surprise him. She was Emelia's successor after all.

"Still," he said under his breath, "he's disrupted my game too much already." And if things continued on the course they were currently on, not even he with what little foresight he took from Emelia would be able to foresee the outcome of his brethren. "I'm thinking some separation is due."

Motioning off to them, Twisted Marksman came up, its long crystallized body shimmering in the dim light. It took a knee, bowing deeply with its hands near its holsters.

"Let Eris know that I'll be coming to visit soon. And make as much ruckus as you please."

Teobaldo paid it no mind as it disappeared into the portal that would take it to the world he knew Ayano and Akio would soon be arriving to. Instead, the wheels in his mind turned, thinking of the best way to let the pieces fall back into place of their own accord.

* * *

All air escapes my lungs the moment we crash through the surface of cold waters. I taste the salt and feel my eyes sting from it as I sink lower and lower. On instinct, my body reacts and swims desperately trying to get to the surface and break through. Thankfully, it doesn't take long for me to do so. The sun hits me as I gulp in a large breath and paddle hard to stay afloat.

In the middle of the damn ocean.

But not even hitting the water that hard made me forget about Akio. I spin around every which way I can to try and find him but when I don't, panic starts to crawl into me. That my chest feels so constricted and my lungs hurt despite being able to breathe just fine tells me exactly where he is. I'm about to dive to find him when I feel something grab ahold of my ankle. A scream escapes me as it pulls me under for just a second before we both surface again.

Akio grabs my forearms to help keep me afloat and with eyes wide asks, "Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah." Coughing through that, I try not to waste too much energy being mad at him for scaring me like that. I wipe at my face to look around and dread just washes over me when I don't see anything nearby. "We're stranded, aren't we?"

"I think so." Suddenly, Akio reaches down to fish out Aurelius from its tail and out into the surface. The spirit simply spews out water like a fountain and it takes my squishing him dry of it for him to come back to. He wraps himself around my neck, his wings tucked in and quivering.

It's not until he does that that I notice just how cold the water really is. My teeth instantly chatter as do Akio's. I'm about to ask what we're going to do when his silver eyes look past me to whatever's behind me. There's no time for me to see what it is. Judging by the massive waves its making, it must be something huge.

"We've got castaways!"

Someone overhead cries out loud enough for me to hear over the roaring waves. It's then, while the crew aboard helps us up, that I realize the grand ship that found us stranded in the middle of the sea.

They don't seem like bad people. Not only do they save us but they also give us plenty of blankets to warm ourselves with and spare us some of their rations. By the looks of things, their nothing but soldiers. Most of them anyway. One in particular sticks out as not a part of them—most likely the one commanding the ship from the orders he swiftly gives and that everybody follows. Once he verifies that we're fine physically, he tries easing us in with a leisure chat.

"I'm Proteus, captain of this ship."

"Ayano." Not missing a beat, I pat Akio on the arm but I give it before he can reply with his own name. "And this is Akio." Because it serves us at the moment, I let a lie fly past my lips. "Our ship got ambushed by pirates. We managed to escape before they brought it down."

"Tragic," Proteus says, "I have heard of pirates being rampant in these parts even with the twelve cities protecting the oceanic trade."

"Ours was a small fleet," Akio adds. "I think it was heading to the nearest city."

"To Syracuse?"

"Yeah." It's easier to agree with him on whatever he says. Proteus seems like a nice enough person; one that'd give us a ride to land even.

A genuine smile comes over his features when he hears thihs. "The gods must be on your side then because that is precisely where we're headed."

"You're offering to take us there?" Akio asks for assurance.

The moment Proteus' smile widens, a sigh leaves me as I try to sound the slightest bit grateful to these so-called gods of his. "Praise them and you for finding us. We're in your debt."

He's quick to assure us that there's no need for that. I'm not one to oppose after that. Once we're on the same page, he offers some time under deck for us to dry ourselves and rest from our wreck. We gladly oblige and follow the soldier he has take us below deck. It's once we're alone that we can breathe a true sigh of relief.

"What freaking luck." Peeling off my jacket, I immediately start wringing it out of the sea water it took in that last dive.

"No kidding." Akio wipes his hair back before following suit with whatever excess water is left on his face. "But by the sound of things, Syracuse seems to be one of twelve other cities in this world. Do you suppose we'll have to search each one if we can't find what we're looking for there?"

Sickness turns my stomach at the thought of that. "I hope not."

Taking the towel they gave us to hand dry my hair, I go to dry Aurelius once I'm done. The Spirit leans into the rough fabric, not caring much for it or perhaps wishing to dry himself off more than anything. Once done, he shakes himself letting the feathers of his wings fluff up before taking off to fly around the room. After a few loops to ensure himself that he's good to go, Aurelius suddenly stops, bobbing back and forth like the needle of a compass before halting to face out in the direction the ship's currently headed.

Akio watches from under the towel he left over his head alongside with me. With a half grin and a nudge to his shoulders, I point at Aury. "Guess we're good to go for now."

"Guess so."

"Now, can we get some more food? I'm starving—"

The floor beneath me jerks so suddenly that it throws us both off our feet with a cry of confusion. Unable to stand for a good second, we simply stare at one another as the tremors subside and battles cries come from above us. We hurry to our feet and rush upward through the small maze that are the bowls of the ship as fast as we can. It's when we're climbing the staircase that'll lead us out that the floor beneath us shakes again, this time far more violently and persistently than before. The doors leading out on deck won't budge though and it takes us slamming hard into them a couple times before they give. Busting through, my eyes widen at the creature that's got the ship wrapped in its tentacles as the soldiers frantically work to get it off before it sinks us.

"What in the hell…"

My eyes dart every which way to take in the image of the grand beast before us, and it's only then when I spot us standing on top of one of its squishy tentacles. I'm too late to react though and it sweeps underneath us when it lifts. It knocks Akio off of his feet but I'm quick enough to grasp onto its slimy appendage as it takes me for a ride overhead. A panicked squeal leaves me as it lifts me with ease high in the air. My eyes shut tight and only open when I finally stop moving. That seems like a rather stupid choice now seeing as I'm staring it right down its ugly yellow eyes. Even worse when it opens it mouth intent on swallowing me whole.

"Let go, Aya!"

I don't hesitate at his call and do as he says. Though my eyes are closed tight, I'm not disappointed since Akio catches me midair and manages to take us away from the monster and to the opposite side of the ship where it's not. Gently, he lets me down on my feet and allows me to calm down after that scare.

"You okay?"

"I'm not food," I say with a nervous chuckle to hide what little shock is still leftover. Swallowing it whole, I turn to look at him as reassurance. "That's something."

He opens his mouth but the ship jerks again before he can say anything. By the side of Proteus' ship, I spot another—one with bright orange sails that are thrashed by the giant squid suddenly swiping at it. It separates the two vessels and leaves us stranded with the beast. But the other ship isn't out of the woods yet judging by the sudden portals that open to surround it.

 _Nightmares._

And not just any. Those red eyes of theirs said it all: they're infected. But as I look between them and the giant squid threatening to dismantle our ship, there's no choice to be made.

We have to protect both.

"Aki, how do you like sushi?"

"What?" he cries out utterly puzzled, "What are you talking about?"

With Ares in hand, I elongate it and tap the wooden floor to let the spear sprout out. I use it to point at the squid on our end before drawing attention to the other ship being attacked by the Nightmares.

"We need to deal with two problems at once. You and Aury help the other crew. I'm gonna get us some dinner."

Those silver eyes of his narrow on me for a second before he clicks his tongue. Without another word, he covers the soles of his feet with darkness and lands from where we stand to the remaining mast of the other ship in one leap with Aurelius hot on his heels. The prowess and ease he has using it never ceases to amaze me. But that's short-lived when a sudden explosion from up ahead brings me back to the squid. Proteus and another—a man in red that I think came from the other ship—manage to somehow pin it in place by its tongue and he swiftly orders the troops to retreat. But I run opposite of the crowd, instead vaulting over it and landing on the sword's pommel to plunge it even deeper into the wood beneath. The creatures lets out a sharp screech and narrows its eyes on me before the tentacles start coming. It's size, though powerful enough to throw me overboard if it caught me, also makes it quite slow. I'm able to skip and vault my way through his appendages more easily than I thought possible. All the while, though, my eyes dart from it to the pair I'd seen earlier as they start climbing the mast.

The creature's quick to notice too but I don't let it interrupt them in whatever they're doing. They clearly have some sort of plan to deal with this thing. The best I can do now is keep it occupied. Changing tactics, I try my hand on a spell that I hadn't up until then. Haruka's more keen on healing than anything but he's way better with magic than I am. I'm halfway decent when it comes to fire ironically enough, but I don't know any high level thunder spells. Thunder won't even scratch it if I use it as a simple spell. But if I can direct it better—be more precise with my target and don't allow the electricity to spread—then it might be enough to stun it for a second.

Focusing on charging up my staff with as much magic as I can, I dodge between its tentacles before jumping on to use them as steps. When I finally reach as far up as it'll let me, I plunge the spear into its neck and conjure.

"Thunder!"

Crackling erupts from Ares and rushes through the metal and into the squid. It convulses a way I've never seen something move and its tentacles slack on their hold at the sudden hit of electricity coursing through its body. My sight sweeps upward to the two hinging on their aimed makeshift spears and when the red-clad man shouts and cuts the rope holding his, I know it's time to move the hell out of their way. Retracting Ares, I jump out of the way as the two impale its head with the masts and land along with them on the squishy monster—the two of them more gracefully that I ever could.

It's as I'm groaning at having landed right on my face that I overhear Proteus' exclaim.

"Sinbad!"

At turning over, I barely catch a glimpse of the tentacle that sweeps across and just past me. I hurry to my feet once its past me but by the time I stand over the edge, Sinbad, the red-clad man, plunges down into the depths of the dark waters below after being grabbed by the beast as it sunk. Beside me, Proteus is stopped in time by his men before he can recklessly dive in after him. My attention, though, is rapt on the bubbles that rise to the surface until they stop.

 _Oh, no._

"Aurelius!" I don't know if he'll hear me but relief washes over me when he flies down to meet me. Pointing down, I give him the order without hesitating. "Swim down and get to him before he—"

A bullet blazes between us, its loud _pop_ going off too sharply to go unnoticed, and rather efficiently shuts me up. My head practically snaps forward alongside everybody else's and we collectively stare at the crystallized monstrosity standing at far edge of the ship.

The Night Terror's sniper is aimed right at us but in spite of that it doesn't fire. No one moves. They won't dare to. That thing could aim for any of them if they move a finger. Though I doubt it. It only seems to be focused on one thing. One person.

It's target.

 _Me._

My eyes dart between it and the ocean, knowing that every second I stand here is another that that Sinbad guy from before lost air.

"Aure—"

The _pop_ sounded off before I could finish his name.

But there wasn't any pain, not instantly. It's not until I see Aurelius in his Kooma Panda form embracing me and taking the hit in my stead that I feel my heart stop. My eyes dart upward to where the bullet pierced his arm; gold sand trickles through the hole, as if he were a sand-filled toy torn apart. I don't have time to process it all before the wound starts cauterizing over with crystal—the Night Terror's distinctive dark sapphire-colored crystal. Frantically, my hands shoot up to scratch at the crystal that began crawling its way and engulfing his arm.

All for nothing.

"Aury!"

When the crystal spreads too much, almost like overly grown moss, Aurelius loses his form. He even has trouble returning to his original form with the rigid crystal that's eating away at him. When he finally manages to turn back, he immediately starts dipping down unable to keep himself afloat. Instinctively, I catch him and almost fall down myself from the added weight; I don't recall him being this heavy. It's not until I'm making sure he's cradled safely in my arms that I realize why. One of his wings is heavy, his feathers crystallized and the mineral continuing to spread at a painstakingly slow pace.

And it's hurting him. The rest of his body twitches and convulses and his mouth lays agape as he wheezes. The sight of him like this turns my shock into rage faster than I ever thought possible.

Then I hear the click of a rifle. It doesn't deter me from raising Ares, flame already surging from the end, and aiming it straight at the Night Terror to match his own aim.

Neither of us get the chance to fire. Proteus and his men draw me back, pulling at me by my clothes and arms just as Akio dropkicks out of the nowhere towards the Night Terror. It's forced to retreat to avoid the hit and the deck receives the nasty hit instead, leaving a large dent on the wood beneath. Akio saults back to take a stance between us and the Nightmare in case it attacked.

It didn't.

It simply hovered feet away from the ship and watched us as we watched it in stride. But despite the impasse, my rage isn't quelled. With them distracted by the silence, I wrench away from the soldiers with Ares in one hand and Aurelius in the other and charge at the Night Terror. But yet again, I don't reach it. Akio intervenes using the whole of his body to block me, his voice shouting at me to stop and calm down. But I won't. I can't.

Not even when the Night Terror leaves without causing any further harm.

But after I can internalize that it's no longer there, I can finally feel how the rage and the adrenaline it came with disappear. What takes its place isn't any better. Dread hits me like a ton of bricks and I can't help but panic as Aurelius continues to squirm in my arms.

"Aury, he's—he's—"

"Let me see him."

I find it hard to even loosen my hold but do so when Akio gently pries my arms apart. We both stare down at him, his labored breathing quite loud and ringing in my thrumming ears. Akio inspects the blue crystal that's latched on his wing and after a moment, he lets a long sigh through his nose.

"It's not as bad as it looks."

I'm sure had I not been holding onto Aurelius, I'd be punching the daylights out of him for saying that. Instead seething and hissing is all I can muster to do.

"What are you talking about?"

"Those crystals—they're petrifying him. But he's still alive."

"He's still crystallizing!"

"And I can slow it down."

That catches me off guard and all the anger leaves once more, replaced this time by relieve. And it showed in my cracked voice.

"Y-You can?"

Akio nods. I feel my heart start beating again.

* * *

The book of peace.

From what murmurs I overheard on our way through the port, it's an artifact that keeps all of the twelve cities of this world safe. One that travels between said cities to be harbored and safekept by each every so often. And with it having arrived to Syracuse, its new home, safely in part because of us, Proteus couldn't thank us enough according to him. As soon as we docked, he offered what he could as thanks: shelter, food, and even an invitation to the celebration for the book's safe arrival. But I wasn't in any mood to celebrate anything with our current affairs.

I don't bother to hide my irritation either and openly questioned how he'd be able to give us all that he claims to be giving us when he was just some captain of the fleet that happened to bring the book in. It isn't until he tells us _why_ he was the one retrieving the book in the first place that things start making a little more sense.

"You're a prince?"

"A meaningless title, really," he responded, clearly adhering to the humble type that he seemingly is.

"Not that meaningless if you can do us a favor," Akio corrected. Akio took the reigns of the conversation then to ask for something that could help us unpetrify Aury.

"Of course. If it's in my hands, I'll do what I can."

"A library and a clinic or apothecary would be a good start."

No other word needed, Proteus gladly took us to the infirmary ward of the palace and made all the staff aware that we were his guests and allowed to use anything that we would need. We thanked him and Proteus was quick to add that we should at least come to the dinner to meet his father to let him thank us in person as well.

"We'll see about it," Akio told him.

That seemed like enough of an answer for Proteus and deemed it time to leave to take care of his business.

That left Akio and I in this laboratory of sorts; it kind of reminded me of Ansem's back in Radiant Garden. One in which Akio seems somewhat comfortable in by the way he makes his way through the ward. Wanting to keep Aurelius warm instead, I wrap him in a blanket to cradle my arms and sit at one of the empty beds in the infirmary while Akio dances around the open space the nurses left for him to work with. Books litter part of the long table they cleared for his use while empty and partially filled vials sit neatly stacked as he concocts whatever he's in the process of making.

It's quite a scene to see him work. Reminds me of how Haruka gets whenever he's studying magic.

"Have you gotten anything from Rinto?"

His question snaps me out of my daze as he glances over his shoulder. Meeting his mercurial eyes, I blink a couple of times myself before getting back to work on the one task that I'm left to do. I let my fingers rest on the crystal that spread across the full length of Aurelius' wing and which is now crawling onto his body. He winces at my touch but allows me to lay them there as I ask Rinto to examine it.

" _Petrified crystal."_

 _What can you tell me about it?_

" _My knowledge is limited. Mineral does tend to grow on organic matter but the span of time that it takes to do so is far lengthier than the instantaneous effect that the one bullet had on Aurelius."_

 _C'mon, Rin, give me something we can work with here._

She took a moment to think and took one long breath.

" _I apologize, master. But disregarding my limited knowledge, the fact that the Night Terror's powers are unknown to us doesn't bode well either. You may want to come to terms that perhaps normal methods to unpetrify him may only do so much if anything at all."_

"...don't say that."

"Hey," Akio's quiet whisper makes me lift my gaze to meet his as he kneels before me. Before I can tell what he's doing, he reaches up to wipe at my cheek with the back of his hand. It's only then that I realize the wetness that rolled down my eyes and start wiping at it myself while averting my gaze. "I know things look bad, but we're going to find a way to undo what was done to him." The corners of his lips curve the slightest bit upward. "So don't go crying on me now. I really don't know what to do when girls cry in front of me."

That he admits that so easily gets a chuckle out of me and lets me relax a moment from the not-so-good news I got from Rinto that I rely to him. This gets him muttering a low 'like I thought' beneath his breath.

"But she's right, isn't she?" I ask, wrapping my arms tightly around Aury to keep that warmth inside him burning. "Without knowing what it's power is, we can't undo what it did to Aury."

"Maybe not all of it, but we'll surely try."

Unsure of what he means, I'm left stranded until he takes me to the table where he'd been working for the past hour and a half. Akio pours some of the pale orange liquid from one of the vials into a small cup. With his instruction, we carefully pry open Aury's mouth and help him drink it. It takes a few moments but when it happens, I'm left in awe. Like ice melting in front of a fire, the crystal begins to lose shape and before long melts away from Aurelius' wing. The usual golden hue though doesn't return to it and a dark blue remains instead. Aury shakes a bit before trying to move it and slowly regains his strength. Immediate relief washes over me bringing a smile to my face.

Instantly, I wrap him again in his blanket and bring him close to me. Aurelius curls closer to me in response, a few of his feathers sticking out and brushing against my fingers. They feel somewhat stiff and cold but with an underlying warmth that is still in him.

 _He's okay._

"How did you know that'd help?"

"Well, the books they provided helped." Akio motions to the books the nurses brought him as he comes closer with the entire vial. "But some of this I read in what books I found at the Sanctuary. I remember that mandrake works well in these cases; it's root specifically. It doesn't seem to exist here, so I used the second best thing that I could find that'd get the job done."

He seems rather detached as he explains this to me, more focused on how Aurelius is faring. It takes a few minutes but eventually Aurelius gathers enough strength to hover out of my arms, but crashes back down just as quickly as he started flying. We run to him and watch as he shakes himself off of the crash landing. Our attention, though, is on the small bit of crystal creeping at the tip of his wing.

Picking him up to cradle in my arms, Akio examines the bit of recrystallized wing.

"It's coming back?" I say, my voice quiet and thick with concern.

"Slowly," he says, releasing Aury's wing, "but yeah."

"You said you read about it from books in the Sanctuary. Was there anything in them about recurring petrification?"

Akio groans and rubs the back of his neck as he tries thinking under the pressure I've put him in. "Well..."

His prolonging this only makes me all the more nervous and scared, and I finally snap at him. "Akio!"

"N-Not exactly!" he shouts back. "There was a book with a couple of stories about creatures capable of such things and ways they got cured. But Aya, they were only stories."

"How were they cured?" I ask sternly.

He doesn't seem keen on answering me. Before long, though, he spills what he knows. "An antidote to perpetual petrification made up of a few things was mentioned: star apples, siren tears, snow bird's feathers."

They all sound strange and my brow furrows. "Snow bird?"

Another groan escapes him as he ruffles the back of his head.

"Like I said, it's all myths from a storybook misplaced in the Sanctuary's library. It wasn't like the rest of the records there."

"But you said you learned how to unpetrify from that library."

"And?"

"Why would there be a storybook in a place where everything else is real."

It takes a moment for him to see things the way I do. Eventually when he does, the realization is clear on his mercurial eyes.

"You think those things are real?"

"It'd explain why it's there with all those other records you say you found, wouldn't it?"

Akio can't find a reason disagree.

"Finding those things here will be near impossible though."

" _Not necessarily."_

 _What do you mean?_

Rinto is quick to explain things from her perspective and I can't help but agree from what little I too saw and overheard.

"Akio, we just fought a giant squid a few hours ago. And from what the soldiers were talking about, creatures of all kinds roam the twelve cities _and_ the seas in between. If there's anywhere we'll find all these ridiculous ingredients it'll be here."

I must be really getting on his nerves by now from the sound of this last grunt he lets out. "I hate that you're making sense."

Aurelius nods before hovering up to my neck and snuggling against it. Reassuringly, I stroke his head and wings and only stop when my fingers come against the jagged crystal.

"Me too, but if there's a way to cure Aurelius of whatever that Night Terror did to him then we have to try—"

All of a sudden, my voice fights against my rumbling stomach for attention. I groan from how inopportune the timing is and Aury brings his other wing over my head to stroke it like I did his. The corners of Akio's lips curl upward with the hint of grin at that.

"For now we should get ourselves some rest and food."

"But Aury—"

"Is unpetrified for the time being." He stretches out his hand and to my surprise, Aury unwraps from my neck to fly over to his open palm. Part of his lips pull up into a grin at last as he pats his head and Aurelius leans into his hand. "Stopping its progress—or restarting it in this case—was the real emergency. With the potion we have now, we can manage the petrification as it comes while we search for a more permanent solution with those ingredients. But we can't forget about ourselves either, Ayano. Especially if we end up going outside of Syracuse to search for these things."

Aury whirls about on Akio's hands to grin back at me as well. That they're ganging up against me is new but I can't say anything against his sound argument. I agree with a nod but just as I'm bringing my head up, a thought comes to me.

"Well, we _did_ get invited to a celebration dinner."

Akio chuckles at the reminder before nodding. "We sure did."

Aury agrees wholeheartedly with my suggestion, his tongue coming out to lick his face in anticipation of such banquet.

* * *

It would be a lie to say that seeing Ayano as down as she was didn't affect Akio as well. Even in the midst of the great banquet Proteus had invited them to, he could tell that the bright smile she had was nothing more than a fake to put him at ease.

A lie plain as day.

But outing her on it when it seemed to help her cope with what was happening to Aurelius didn't sound like the best of ideas. All it would invite would be for her to recluse herself. And at this point in time, that was the last thing he wanted her to do.

Mercurial eyes lingered a moment longer on Ayano to make sure that regardless of whatever facade she put up, she'd at least be alright for the time being. He had to admit, her stuffing her face alongside Aury was one hell of a relief. But he'd learned to be skeptical of looks; he now knew exactly how deceiving appearances could be.

Especially hers.

Food helped distract her though and with that tiny peace of mind, he scoured the rest of those in attendance. They all seemed like people of importance, noblemen and the rich that helped bring the city of Syracuse to where it was now from the looks of it. It certainly made the two of them stand out a little too much if the countless of eyes staring at them from any one person were anything to judge by. None of them seemed suspicious to him though. He kept his guard up all the same, though he doubted that after the Night Terror attack that Teobaldo would be making another move so soon.

His eyes lowered to the golden bracelet that hung from his wrist and twisted it around with his other hand when his thoughts went to that man. The inscriptions on the metal shone in the glow of the firelight as a reminder of the chains that tied them together still. Akio heaved a long sigh and let the metal fall heavily back onto his wrist.

 _I should have never agreed._

In spite of how desperate he'd been for answers—to find the root of what spiraled his life out of control—doing this to _her_ …

Regret held no candle to all the other emotions that wracked his mind. But wanting for the past to change was not only futile, it was idiotic. There wasn't any use in thinking what he should or shouldn't have done. All he could do now was keep going and try not to mess this up any more than it already was.

"Pardon me."

The confident voice that softly spoke up above the droning prattle brought his eyes away from the bracelet and up to the woman that stood before him. Though dressed in fine clothes like all the others there was a glint in her eyes hiding behind all that demureness of hers. It reminded him of Ayano's in a way.

The brunette motioned to the seat beside him. "Is it taken?"

Mindlessly, Akio shook his head and allowed her the space to do as she wished. She gave him a warm smile before sitting down beside him, smoothing the skirt of her dress as she did so. Taking a long breath, she scanned the room like he'd done before and leaned a bit sideways towards him as she spoke.

"Quite the party, isn't it?"

"Sure is."

"Of course, it must be odd and boring for a foreigner to see us celebrate the arrival of a book."

Akio gave the woman a sidelong glance, wariness taking over his senses at her strange statement. "I missed your name, miss."

"Oh, how rude of me. I'm the ambassador from Thrace, Marina."

"Ah," Akio let out from under his breath at hearing that. "Ambassador. Explains how you know I'm an outsider. Surely with your position, you'd know where everybody's from and how to deal with them. Which surely would give away an unfamiliar face, I imagine."

"My apologies if my approach was somewhat blunt," Marina corrected herself, letting a small, nervous chuckle out. "We don't get many people in either Syracuse or Thrace from outside the twelve cities. So meeting a foreigner is quite…"

When she couldn't seem to find the word, Akio provided the first one he could think of.

"Alarming?"

Marina pursed her lips at his own bluntness. "More like fascinating." Hearing this made his brow knit together in confusion. At noticing this Marina smiled before turning her sights over to the long table that held all sorts of delicacies and where Ayano and Aury both were gulfing their share down. "You and your companion have our thanks for helping protect the book on its journey here, but from experience, Syracusean cordiality is thin to foreigners. We are fierce and relentless when protecting our people, and those present here who have heard the story from Prince Proteus and the crew are wary of you, who are practically children, having fought off monsters like the ones they told about."

"We helped fight it off," Akio corrected her, "Not really anything impressive if you ask me."

"That you think so is quite telling of how different our mindsets are."

"Are you wary of us too, miss ambassador?"

She chuckled. "Quite the opposite. I can admire your strength and tenacity. This world isn't an easy one to live in, and whether man or woman, boy or girl, I think it's only natural that we learn to face whatever hardship comes our way. Mental as well as physical."

"But you still think we're weird, don't you?"

"Weird is too strong of a word." Marina smiled and turned to Akio briefly to make her point clear. "I'd say extraordinary. Especially your companion."

When her gaze returned to Ayano, Akio accompanied her and he scoffed at the sight of her trying to push food down Aurelius' mouth to keep him from choking. He finally let out a chuckle low in his breath when the Spirit swallowed and let out a satisfied breath.

"She's something, all right."

"Marina!"

Her head swivelled at hearing her name being called. At seemingly spotting whoever had called out to her, Marina turned back to Akio for a brief moment. With a smile, she stood and curtsied with a small bow of her head.

"Rest assured that regardless of all their gawking and chatter, no one will raise a finger against you. Neither Proteus nor the king will allow such thing after what you have done for us."

Though it did little to put him at ease, he appreciated the gesture all the same. "Thanks."

"You're very much welcome…"

"Akio."

She bowed her head once more as her smile turned gentler. "I hope you enjoy the rest of your night, Akio."

* * *

 _He's a freak of nature._

" _Technically speaking, he's a crafted creature, master."_

 _Does that explain how he can swallow anything without getting full?_

" _Spirits have no stomachs. Or taste buds for that matter."_

"Why does he keep eating food then?"

"Aya?"

Briefly pausing my shoving food down Aury's throat, I lift my head to meet Akio's silvery gaze as comes to us. The time it takes for me to look up is enough for Aury to swallow and exhale before leaving my side to rest atop Akio's head instead. Akio doesn't seem bothered by it. Almost like he's grown used to both of our shenanigans.

" _Yours, master. Aurelius doesn't do much of anything."_

"How are you faring?" he asked, picking some food up himself.

For once I take a moment to think, opting to not talk with the mouthful of food I have myself. While he takes to eating the small pastries, I swallow and answer him while scanning the rest of the room.

"Well fed which is always good. Though I'm kind of getting a weird vibe from the people here. Like we're not welcomed."

"You wouldn't be too far off."

The tilt of my head is enough for him to tell me what he knew about the Syracusean people. Apparently, they're not as hospitable as they make themselves out to be.

" _The Book of Peace is the grand treasure that protects them, master. They have grown to be wary of outsiders."_

"Makes sense." Though I answer Rin, it also serves to reply to Akio's explanation.

"We shouldn't overstay our welcome."

"Agreed. But for now, let's enjoy it while we can—"

"Make way!"

Cries of shock wash over the crowd as the soldiers make their way across the hall towards the entrance, brandishing their swords at whomever had just gotten to the party. Curious, I try looking over the crowd that gathers around the entrance but with the height disparity, it's a real challenge for me. Akio doesn't have this problem, and Aury much less with him atop his head. Pouting, I make my way through, shoving others aside to squeeze through until I get a glimpse of what's got their attention.

 _Isn't that the pirate captain?_

" _Sinbad, master."_

Oh, yeah.

Judging by the exchange between him and Proteus, they seem to be old acquaintances. Something that the soldiers don't particularly like. The sudden nudge that pushes me to one side suddenly brings my attention below me where the furry and nubby tail of something saunters by the crowd. Curious about it, I follow behind it to find a large dog climbing onto the food table I was just at and swallowing everything in its path like nothing. Akio stands aside along with the rest of the people nearby and simply watches as the dog ravages through the banquet. Not wanting to be left behind, Aurelius jumps down onto the table, morphing into a Necho Cat after some trouble, and goes to town to get what food he could away from the dog.

I wait by the end of the table with a meaty turkey leg in hand. When the dog reaches me, his head lifts up, frosting marring his snout as he slurps up a cooked squid tentacle.

"Hey there, fellow." Raising the turkey leg, I immediately get his attention. His short ears perk up and he follows as I lure him around with the piece of meat. I take a piece of it and feed it to him rather easily; once I do, he easily trusts me and lets me pet him in exchange for the turkey leg. I oblige with that swap. Once done, he gladly licks at my face in gratitude, getting a laugh out of me.

"A-Alright, alright!" I roughly scratch the sides of his head which he apparently likes and leans into my hands. "You're a lively little fella, aren't you?"

Just as he was starting to enjoy himself, a flash of gold dashes across my field of vision and knocks the dog upside the head. Following it, Aury bounced across the floor after having hit the pup with its music note tail. Growling at it, said dog jumps down from the table and begins chasing Aurelius around while barking loudly.

I shout at him to come back but they're too fast for both me and Akio, who came to find me after hearing my shouting. When we chase the two of them outside, we find the dog cornering Aurelius who doesn't seem to care much about his predicament.

"Aurelius!"

He hears me, I can tell by how his ears perk slightly, but he doesn't stop hissing at the dog. It's like he's taunting him for some reason.

"What's wrong with him?" Akio asks after catching up a few moments later.

"He just...hit the dog out of nowhere." I take a deep breath to ready a shout but before I can let it out, a deeper voice calls over me.

"Spike!"

All at once, the dog perks up and turns back into the goofball I'd been playing around with in the banquet. Behind us we spot Sinbad and the few men he'd taken into the banquet on their way out from said place. This dog, Spike, must be his. Spike doesn't need a second call and saunters off back to Sinbad and the others. Sinbad doesn't spare us a glance but the men he has with them do. The moment is quick though as they head off into the general direction of the docks.

It's only after they're well out of sight that Aurelius comes back to me, changing into his winged ball form to hover over. I catch him in my arms but glower down to chide him for his actions. He only huffs at me, not really caring.

"It's getting late," Akio mentions.

It gets my attention for a split second before the sky completely takes it from him. The dark sky is spotted with countless of stars that are so bright, they almost seem to light the city more than the moon itself does.

"Look at that," I point them out to him. "I've never seen stars that bright."

"They're not all that." My brow knits down together and when I turn to him, he has the ghost of a smile starting to lift at the edges of his lips. Chuckling, he shrugs his shoulders, "Through all this world traveling, I still haven't seen a night sky more beautiful than the one from the Sanctuary."

"Really?"

He nods. "When you see them, all other night skies will appear dull in comparison."

"When I see them?"

Almost as if catching himself, Akio chuckles and rubs at the back of his neck. He mumbles at first, which I hear but can't make out, before he raises his voice to normal and gives me a lopsided grin.

"I forgot I hadn't said anything before—I've been thinking that maybe once all this is over, I could take you to the Sanctuary. You know, so you can learn more about this whole Rescuer thing for yourself. If you want to, that is."

My heart swells at his words, their promise of such a nice future quite enticing, and a small smile forms on my lips as I meet his gaze.

"Yeah, I'd like that very much, Aki."

Out of the blue, an earthquake hits and the floor beneath us quakes so hard that we can't keep on our feet. Screams from the banquet hall are heard quite clearly as the lights from inside flash chaotically. The building itself seems to be falling apart but it's nothing compared to the tall tower that sits far off on a cliff at the other end of the city.

That tower…

 _That's where the book is._

And the light that had been shining from inside isn't on anymore. Not only that but dark clouds where starting to gather ominously around the top floor and began spreading, very reminiscent to me of how darkness overtakes a whole world. My guess might not be so far off. Though maybe not the kind of darkness that calls forth Heartless, it certainly did something to Syracuse as it sent a shockwave that allowed the darkness to spread out towards the rest of the city.

Akio asks if I'm okay but I don't bother answering. I'm much more focused on the blue gleam that I somehow manage to catch sight of as it stands at the peak of the tower before it disappears into the dark. It was hard to make out but I'm sure of what I saw—it was that Night Terror that shot Aurelius.

Haruka's dark side.

And a part of me almost doesn't want to find out what it did to the book to cause such a rampant darkness to spread within the blink of an eye.

 _But we must._

Grabbing Akio's arm, I haul him up to his feet as I stand myself, glancing between the hall from where guests are exiting in a panic and the tower that stands cracked and darkened.

"C'mon, we gotta get moving."

"Where to?"

"Proteus," I clarify to him, "Something happened to that book."

And whatever did cannot be any good.

* * *

 _ **A/N:**_

 **Ahhh, I had planned to get this out before Christmas but things got too busy for me to finish in time! T-T But at least it's out now. Sorry if it's a tad bit on the shorter side. Also, IT'S THE FIRST UPLOAD OF 2019! WHOO!**

 **I'd like to thank each and every one of you who've reviewed, followed, and favorite this story! I'm editing on the go and don't have everything in reach like I usually do. But don't worry, that won't be a problem-why? Well allow me a bit of your time for a few news.**

 **1)I've had this whole story outlined for a while so the ending is pretty much set. By my count, I think there's about 5 or 6 more chapters, give or take, so we're pretty close to to that end. And with KH3 coming out in a couple of days, I might or might not tweak it to better flow into the next story I'll write for KH3 (but I'm getting waaay ahead of myself there cx). Point of the matter is that I have only some chapters left to finish this one :D**

 **2)I started school the week before last. And it's time consuming. Med school; who knew, right? But yeah, I have only so much time during the week to write, sometimes I don't, and that's gonna slow updates a lot. Don't worry, I'll be writing all the same. I love this story and all my other wips too much to leave them cold turkey like that. They'll just slow down to a crawl so don't get too angsty with the long waits between chapters.**

 **3) Because of these time constrictions I will most likely be unable to keep up with the slotted updates I did last year. I'll be updating the stories that are my top priority or that I feel more up to writing for. REST ASSURED THO! CoU is at the top of my list! I want to finish this one so that I can get to outlining the next one once I get to play KH3 :) So yeah, tho you'll see updates for another one alongside this one, I'm gonna finish CoU first! :D**

 **Alright. I believe that's everything. Guess you'll be seeing more of this at a so-so regular pace. We really don't have much further to go but I'll enjoy writing every bit left that we have. And even after we're done, it'll be just until the next, and possibly, final installment of the little saga. Who knows? I might even go back and rewrite my older stories of this to make them neater. But that'll be for later.**

 **Anyway, I'll rambling x3 I'll leave you guys with this. Hope you enjoyed this chapter and that you stay tuned for the next update!**

 _ **-**_ _Evie_


	16. Memoir XVI: Enchanted Waters

**Memoir XVI:**

 _Enchanted Waters_

* * *

I've never understood the judicial system.

We never had much of a problem with criminals in Wasteland. They were more mostly miscreants being mischievous. Radiant Garden wasn't any different since most of the citizens living there were the few survivors that wanted the place to flourish. And with any other world that I visited, their judicial authority wasn't something I put a lot of attention to.

Which is why being in the crowd of a full court against whom they accused to be the one who stole the Book of Peace the night before is strange to say the least.

Especially because of who they're accusing.

"Enough of your lies." King Dymas' voice booms within the domed courtroom and it echoes alongside him as he made his way to stand before the shackled Sinbad. "Sinbad, for the last time, give us the book."

"How many times do I have to say it," Sinbad counters, tired of hearing what we all had for the last twenty minutes, "I don't have it."

 _This doesn't seem right._

" _Master?"_

I don't really hear her. I'm busier listening to both sides of the argument. Looking at the two possibilities and stances that they're taking and trying to figure out which made more sense. Is Sinbad guilty or innocent? But I had been going over this in my head all night long after I learned that they arrested him for stealing the book. Mostly because it bothered me.

Some things aren't adding up.

Just as I'm about to step in as they interrogate him further, Akio takes a hold of my forearm and plants me in place. "Don't butt in."

"We saw him heading to the docks," I reason, wanting him to see what I do.

"And the witness they have said he knocked them out cold, Aya."

"You really think he got from there to the tower _on the other side of the city_ in that instant?"

His stern look turned into a glare but he didn't deny what I said. Even he knew that what I said held merit. Logically speaking, Sinbad couldn't have done it. With no more solid reason to hold me back, I pull away but don't have enough time to make my way through the crowd when the judges that had been brought in for the trial stand and the spokesman raises his voice to be heard by all of us.

"Very well then," he says, "the delegation of the twelve cities finds you guilty of treason and we sentence you to die. Take him away."

Sinbad starts fighting back against the soldiers and in the chaos, I start making my way through the crowd. Though they reproach me for it, I don't pay them any attention and instead head straight out into the dais where they're starting to take him away. I'm forced to stop when the soldiers impede my way. And though I'm tempted to, I don't raise a finger against them. Fighting isn't what I want—no matter how much this injustice is boiling my blood, all I want is for the truth to be known.

"Wait a second!" All at once the chaos quiets down as I make myself heard.

"The foreigner?" The acerbic tone that King Dymas says that in isn't lost to me but I disregard it to speak my mind instead.

"Your majesty, judges, I know I have no standing to declare in your courts but I can't just stand there and allow this injustice to continue." They didn't seem to agree but before the soldiers could push me back and take Sinbad away, Akio steps in along with me. "My partner and I saw Sinbad and the men he brought last night heading to the docks minutes before the book was stolen. There is no logical way for Sinbad to have done what you accuse him of."

"Pack of lies," King Dymas hisses. That he accuses me of that just boils my blood hotter than before. "If you're on his side, then you're part of a conspiracy against the twelve cities—" _What?! "_ Take them away as well!"

The soldiers are on us before I know it, but before they can haul us alongside Sinbad, a loud voice booms over his shouting.

"Stop!" Parting through the crowd, Proteus makes his way before the judges and comes to our and his friend's defense. "I demand the right of substitution. Take me in their place."

This causes a commotion that is even louder than the one I caused. King Dymas is the one mostly against this and the judges aren't that much more pleased about this right he's demanding.

"Ayano and Akio who fought with us to protect the book and our soldiers vouch for Sinbad's innocence. Sinbad says that Eris took the book. And I believe them both. Let them go free and let him go to Tartarus to recover the book."

 _Tartarus?_

King Dymas makes a logical leap that I'm sure anybody would if this were any other case; if they let him leave, Sinbad won't come back. But Proteus isn't budging.

"Sinbad either stole the book or he's telling the truth and it's in Tartarus. Either way he's our only hope."

Like the prince he must've been bred to be, his speech is enough to convince the judges. Though by the sound of it, they're just as wary of what this could mean if Sinbad is lying and leaves to never return. The spokesman hushes the woman who argues by his side to address with Proteus directly.

"Proteus, you realize that if Sinbad does not return, you will be put to death in his place."

At hearing this, Akio and I finally understand the gravity of this substitution but only he voices his astonishment. "...oh shit."

And what's crazier, they agree to his terms.

"So be it. Sinbad has ten days to return the book."

Begrudgingly, King Dymas can do nothing but obey their ruling. Sinbad is set free and Proteus is taken in his place with only one last sentence utter before leaving.

"Oh and Sinbad, don't be late."

* * *

"I knew I should've tied you up."

"You worry too much."

"No. I worry just enough for the both of us. God knows you don't."

My eyes almost roll to the back of my head from Akio's whining. We dodged a rather unreasonable death sentence, sure. And it was caused because I can't keep to myself, true. But if he thinks that my butting in wasn't a good idea simply because it was better not to involve ourselves, he can buzz off. That trial wasn't just unjust, it was bogus as well. They were in a panicked frenzy because of their stolen book and I understand that, but it didn't justify forgoing a fair trial. Even against a known thief and dishonest pirate.

"So," he says, a little bit calmer. Lifting my gaze to him, all I catch a glimpse of him as he expectantly folds his arms in front of his chest. "What is your plan now?" Lips pursed, my glance goes askance at his question. Seeing that, one of his eyebrows raises skeptically. "You do have a plan, right?"

I have _something,_ though I'm positive it won't be something he'll like hearing. But before I can propose anything, Akio heaves a long sigh before nodding.

"Stowing away into a pirate ship will be dangerous but not impossible, I suppose."

That he brings that up out of the blue makes my eyebrows knit down together. "What?"

"That's...that _is_ what you're planning, isn't it?"

My jaw drops for the briefest of moment but I close it quick to smile at him.

"Well, I guess it's _your_ plan now." His mercury eyes stare at my hazel for a good minute as that information sinks in. Once it does, he cringes and groans while pinching the bridge of his nose. Skipping to him, I pat his back encouragingly. "Good job!"

"No, I'm not saying—I thought that's what you were—" In the end, he shuts up and heaves another long, defeated sigh, giving up on fixing his mistake altogether as he drags his hands down his face. "Why do I bother?"

"Hey, you got that right on point though. Pretty impressive."

"Not a compliment."

"But it is!"

"Forget it," he says, resigning to that fate. "But like I was saying, if we want to sneak in we better do it now before they head out."

"Right."

"If you want to do that, then I'm coming with you."

The voice that rose not far from us took us by surprise. Luckily we both had the head not to attack whoever approached us. Instead we hold our weapons tight—Ares in my hands and Akio's fists curling—and wait for the silhouette to come toward us.

When they do, I don't recognize them but Akio seems to somehow. And I don't like that they're on first name basis already.

"Miss Marina?"

The young brunette nods as she comes out into the light for us to see her. When Akio loosens his tightly curled fists, I reluctantly release Ares back into its holster so that she can come closer. I recall seeing her in the courtroom; she was one of the ones that pleaded to the judges after Proteus took Sinbad's place. But she looks different now. Gone are her fancy clothes and jewelry, and in their place she's wearing more comfortable clothes by the looks of them. Like she's ready to leave somewhere.

Seeing how befuddled I am about her sudden appearance, Akio takes to explaining who she is.

"Miss Marina is an ambassador from another city, and Proteus' fiance."

"How'd you know that?"

It didn't surprise me that I didn't know that. But it's quite curious that Marina is just as confused about his knowing this as much as I am. Akio simply shrugs his shoulders and gives us both a droll look. "People talk without a care when they're intoxicated."

"Uh-huh." Turning back to Marina, I turn into the skeptical voice of reason for once. "And what did you mean by 'you're coming with us'?"

"As you heard."

It's obvious that she's trying to act tough. And a part of her is, that much is obvious, but I've seen tougher people than her. Compared to them, she's more of a ferocious cat than anything, hissing at us with empty threats and dull claws. She notices this and groans before taking a different approach.

"Look, I know this isn't the most ideal situation for any of us, but as things stand I can't find anybody else who will try."

"Slow down, miss," Akio says, being the calmer one between us. "Start from the beginning. Why do you even want to get into a pirate ship?"

Her eyes go askance for a moment as she mulls over her answer. It takes some time but when she replies, I see this kind of glint in her eye that I can't help but recognize. Like a sense of determination that she won't speak of but is clearly there.

"Proteus put his life on the line for a man he hasn't seen in ten years. He still thinks of that pirate, Sinbad, as the same friend he knew. He trusts him to bring back the Book of Peace. I don't."

 _Ah, I see now._

"And you want to make sure that he does get it back."

Marina nods. "And if I have to help you sneak in, then I will."

That comment makes me scoff, my amusement more than obvious from her choice of words. "You, help us? Now how do you suppose you'll do that?"

"You're children. I'm sure it'll be difficult to stowaway into a pirate ship."

"Not necessarily." Akio corrects her before briefly turning to glance down at me. He knows as well as I do that getting into that ship will be easy with my powers. But instead of completely shutting her down, he adds, "But I would like to hear how you were thinking of getting onto the ship by yourself?"

"Well, they're pirates, right?" She takes a bag from her belt and tosses it our way. I'm fast enough to catch it and the bag lands heavily on my palm. Puzzled, I peek inside. The moment I do, my eyes widen at all the precious stones inside. I count them under my breath, naming off each gem and getting a head count of just how much they might be worth in this world.

 _How'd she come about all these jewels?_

" _Akio did say she's an ambassador."_

Alright, you have a point there. And seeing as they were pirates who tried to steal the book once for profit according to what Proteus said before, it makes sense that they'd be enticed by such a sum. But I'm still not convinced. It's just when I'm about to say it that Marina steps closer to us but only looks down at me.

Like she knows that I'm the one that needs persuading.

"I know you don't trust me. I don't have a reason to trust you either. But I think we can help each other."

"Do tell," I taunt.

"Tartarus; wherever that is, it must be out of the scope of many maps. Uncharted lands can have countless of marvels that people have only heard of but never seen. And who knows what we might find there; maybe even some ingredients for an unpetrification potion."

In that moment, it's not only me who's wary about her anymore. This time Akio steps forward, physically putting half of himself between us to stare her down.

"How do you know about that?"

Though there's no determination like before, there doesn't seem to be any ill will in her either. Instead, all I see in her eyes when she turns from Akio and I to Aurelius who's sitting on my shoulder with his wings hanging low by my side is some kind of softness. Gentleness almost.

"I've seen what Chilling Petrification can do. How it slowly eats away those who have it. I've seen many try to cure it. None ever have."

Aurelius hides his face closer to mine, fearing her words. I reach up and cradle his head in my hand to reassure him and glare back at her. "They didn't try hard enough."

"They did," Marina assures me, "But only with what they could find in the twelve cities. Never with what they could have found beyond those uncharted waters."

Her words make me think for a moment. "How much do you know about these uncharted waters that they wouldn't?"

"I've studied whatever books I could find on them," she admits. "I know all the stories written about them, including the fairytales and anecdotals."

"You think you could spot what those weird ingredients are for us then?"

"I think so, yes."

Now it's my turn to mull over what she's proposing. She wants our support; a good idea when what she's planning is to sneak into a ship that's sailing away in a few hours full of pirates. That, at least, tells me that she's not stupid. And she's observant enough to know exactly what we would accept as a bribe to help her. Just like she did with the pirates.

I don't like her. But I can respect her tenacity and wits.

"Alright." Sticking out my hand, I lay it open for her to see. "We'll help you get this book back, so long as you help us get these ingredients to heal this Chilling Petrification."

Marina puffs out her chest, proud and enthused about what she how me to accept to her terms. But just as she's reaching down with her hand to shake mine, I take it away for a second, smug grin starting to turn the edges of my lips up.

"But, miss ambassador, we're not your free bodyguards. Remember that our relationship will be mutual. You help us. We'll help you. Understood?"

"Of course."

With that, I shake her hand firmly before turning to Akio and patting his arm. "Well, we better get going." I look over my shoulder to Marina. "We wouldn't want to miss our ride now, would we?"

* * *

"How aren't they seeing us—"

" _Shh!"_

The one pirate nearest to us stops in his tracks with crate of provisions in hand and turns our way. His eyes go wide and I imagine Marina's do as well, but I'm not paying her any attention. She's not my target.

They are.

" _Master—"_

I brush off her cautionary tone. It's obvious why she's worried—I can feel the pressure and heat that burns my eyes and the weight that casting my masks on three people is having on my body. But I can deal with this for now. What matters is not getting caught.

Thankfully the pirate leaves quick enough with a swift crossing over his chest as he goes on his merry way.

 _Thank goodness for their superstitions._

The orange tinted rays of sun had started to break over the horizon when we snuck our way in. Something easy when I could cast my masks on us. But Marina almost got us found out more than once with her incredulousness. She didn't believe I'd be able to pull something so unthinkable off. Joke's on her; my whole existence was something unthinkable and yet here I am. Anything will be a cinch compared to that—including getting on a ship full of smelly pirates.

With them at a safe distance from us, I can finally manage to talk in a hushed whisper and urse them to do the same.

"So where were you planning on getting to talk to the captain?"

"There." Marina points at the door that is just below the helm and most likely leads down into the captain's quarters. "Can you get me there without them noticing?"

"If you can shut up."

Marina scowls at my cheeky comment but I just smirk it off and focus. It's lucky that they're all busy working. They're so focused with what they're doing that it's much easier to stealth by without being seen or touched. We get there no problem and I mask the door opening to let all three of us inside. Skipping down several steps gets us to a door faster and when we get to it, Marina turns to us and gives each of us a long glance.

"Alright, it's my turn."

"Better not get us kicked overboard, miss ambassador."

She frowns at me but Akio does wonders in calming the tension between us by reeling me back by my shoulders like I'm some sort of obnoxious child. Giving him a dull stare, he physically puts himself between us again before addressing Marina.

"Fine. But remember our deal."

"Of course." Reaching down to her waist, she takes another bag aside from the bag she showed us before and gives it to Akio. He takes it after a moment and I'm left to stare at it from over his shoulder. "Use it if you get in trouble."

Marina steps into the room without another word and I turn down at Akio before asking, "Jewels?"

"Yep." He weighs the bag tentatively in his hand. Don't know if curiosity won him over or what, but he opens the bag and takes out one of the sharp-pointed gems in there. Satiated, he puts it back and sighs before handing it over to me. Damn thing's heavy. Thank goodness I have a magic pouch now. "We should wait outside in case someone comes in—"

 _Creeeaaak._

Both of our mouths shut tightly at hearing the door upstairs noisily creak ajar, what sounded like annoyed grumbling accompanying it. Without thinking about it I press myself against the wall closest to me and try not to breathe. Akio does the same and gratefully, we just about fit right against the little bit of open space left to the sides of the already narrow staircase. Because of this, Sinbad's able to walk right down them and not touch us and break my illusion. When I take a breath thinking we're out of the woods, Akio slaps his hand over my mouth and nose to keep me from making a sound and gestures down with a short nod of his head. My eyes follow to see Sinbad's stare, wide-eyed and incredulous, directed at us—no, not _at_ us. Just the space ahead of him. Like he's trying to get a hold of his bearings. He does after what feels like an eternity to my oxygen-deprived lungs and the moment that door closes behind him, Akio releases me. I gasp, sweet air finally filling my lungs again.

He doesn't let me rest though.

"We wait outside." His hand grabs my forearm without warning and pulls me up to the door. No one notices the door open as we come out and press ourselves to either side of it once it closes behind us. Finally outside where there's plenty of noise, we can breathe a little easier.

But at least the hard part is over. Now we wait for Marina to convince Sinbad—

 _Smack!_

I groan into my hands, holding as much of my face as I can from the door just whacking me right on it. The moment I slide back against the harden wood to a seat Aury does his best to comfort me, but his fussing over does little to lessen the pain that just barraged me. And by the sound of it, Akio too. But that's easily quieted by Marina's shrieks and Sinbad's shouting to be heard over it. Rubbing my nose to ease what little of the pain I could, I take a peek and watch as he takes her to the other side of the ship where another room is. The gruff bark so near my ear spooks me though and gets all of my attention as a large dog stands in front of me.

Looking at me.

 _Oh, hell._

I almost don't want to believe it, but when he jumps on me and starts slobbering all over my face, it's pretty obvious.

That damn hit broke the masks on us.

"You're those kids."

One of the pirates seems to recognize us. I don't know how but he does, but when he points us out, questions start shooting out of them indiscriminately.

"Kids?"

"Yeah, the one that beat those monsters!"

"And the girl's the one Sinbad mentioned."

"Pay up. She's blonde."

Though that last one kind of comes out from left field, it all comes to a screeching halt when Sinbad's voice booms over theirs.

"What in the world's going on here?" He makes his way through the crowd and at seeing us his eyes narrow in suspicion in the fraction of a second. "How'd you get on here?"

I thought about lying but for some reason, my gut told me not to. It wasn't because I could trust him—far from it really—but more like I could sense that even if I did lie, I would only be found out.

 _A liar will sniff out another in a heartbeat._

So I didn't.

"We helped Marina sneak in."

Murmurs wash across the crew but Sinbad's stern scowl sets them straight. "How?"

Akio hisses at me under his breath to try to stop me from talking anymore. H even tries snatching my wrist to stop me from stepping forward, but I easily slip out of his grasp and step up to come face to face with the ship's captain. My neck cranes back to meet his scowl with a shit-eating grin of my own. I've been a scoundrel since childhood. Or so Oswald's told me. Whatever the case, I know not to be intimidated by people bigger or meaner than me. And Sinbad is both of those things by the look of things.

He stares right back at me, dark brown eyes staring me down as if to deter me. But I stand my ground. Sinbad seems to realize that I don't intend to step down either because he scoffs before one of his eyebrows raises in mild amusement and disbelief.

"You're the ones from that squid ambush."

Not a question. But since I don't know where he's going with this, I answer it like one.

"Yeah."

Behind me, Akio steps closer as if trying to dissuade anything from escalating. But I don't think it's necessary. Sinbad points behind him with his thumb to where he locked up Marina with his dog, Spike.

"You with her?"

"For our own reasons."

Akio doesn't lie but he doesn't give much information either. It's making this conversation into some sort of negotiation almost. One to allow us to be out here unlike Marina. Sinbad's gaze remains on us for a second longer before he scoffs and waves us away as he walks past us towards the helm.

"Keep an eye on them, Kayle, Rat."

As if breaking the chilling silence his sheer commanding presence put over the whole crew, they take to their tasks from where they seemingly left them and the ship runs on like nothing happened. Only two people stay behind with us: a tall and muscular, dark-skinned man, and another much lankier and scruffier looking one that dangles from the ropes over the mast.

"Kayle." He nods back at his crewmate that swings back and forth while sitting on the ropes. "And this is Rat."

Rat bows his head. "Signore, signorina."

"Hello." My voice is barely audibly over the waves that lap against the ship as it goes full speed ahead. But the question I've got needs an answer. I take my gaze off of them briefly as I follow Sinbad's retreating back. "So how are we going to get to Tartarus?"

"Tartarus?" The two repeated the word, their tones sounding mostly shocked and slightly tinged with dread.

Rat chuckles nervously for a moment before raising a finger to give himself some pause. "If you would excuse me, signorina." He didn't even wait for me to reply before he pulled himself up and towards Sinbad.

His departure is quite odd and out of the blue but we don't have time to question it. Kayle shakes his head, a smile on his face as he stares after his crewmate and captain, before he turns to face us once more. "You two are some tough kids," he says, motioning for us to follow him as he takes us up a few steps to the helm of the ship. From here, we can see what awaits us beyond. Nothing but a vast and endless stretch of sea. "Specially for wanting to go somewhere as dangerous as that."

My hand instantly strokes Aurelius as he rests on the crook of my neck, his wings hanging heavily over my shoulders. "Dangerous or not, we need to go."

"Speaking of where we need to go." Akio leans back against the wood parapet and crosses his arms over his chest to watch Kayle as he spreads a map on the table next to the wheel. "Does he actually know where we're going?"

Kayle huffs and gives a sidelong glance to Sinbad as he meets him on the helm. He shares a long look with Sinbad who groans obviously annoyed at him.

"I'm only doing this for the money."

"Right." Kayle emphasizes the word, obviously not believing a single thing he said. Frankly, neither do I. _For a pirate, he's a lousy liar._ "So how do we get there?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Sinbad points out towards the sky ahead and to the brightest star that shines high over the horizon even as the sun starts fully rising.

"That star's our point."

* * *

The perilous and jagged stone peaks rise from the ocean floor and are so close together that they look like a barbed maw. I heard Kayle and the others call it something but the name slips my mind.

" _The Dragon's Teeth, master."_

 _Thanks for the grim reminder, Rin._

It certainly is a grisly name for bunched up peaks. But I suppose they call it that for a reason. Sitting by the front of the ship to look ahead at what we have to traverse through, I gently stroke at Aury's wing where the crystal has slowly crept to and where it's started to engulf it again. It was worse before but with Akio's potion it receded enough to not hinder his flight for now. He still doesn't want to though and instead has me carry him around on my shoulders or arms. I don't mind. I'll carry him to the end of this world to get him better.

Not far behind me I hear Rat speaking to someone. 'Signorina' he says. Peeking over my shoulder, I see Marina gawking at the same thing I am. Guess she got out from her shared room with Spike. That's all the attention I give her though and instead focus as we approach the path's entrance. I gently place Aury back on my shoulder and let him wrap his tail around my neck as I head over to where Kayle and Akio are.

To call it creepy would be an understatement. This place is a graveyard, plain and simple. A ship graveyard to be specific.

"Those are ship remains...aren't they?" I whisper under my breath.

Akio nods slowly just in awe as the rest of them. "Looks like it."

It's not just ships though. There are human remains here as well. And as we steadily row by the narrow pathway, I can see why. Even for the Chimera, this is almost too narrow of a path to go through. That Rat's guiding Sinbad so that he can sail relatively safe through the treacherous rock-ridden terrain gives me a little relief but it still seems too close for comfort.

I bet if I stretch my hand out I can probably touch the wet peaks towering beside us, cagining us in what's been a tomb for so many. Curious about it, I stretch my hand out to see if I can really touch it with the tips of my fingers. It's when they feel the moist and clammy feel of the rock's surface though that I hear something over the gentle lapping of water. It's quiet. Almost to the point where I wouldn't be able to hear it. But for some reason, the sound is much to distinct for me not to.

 _Is that...singing…?_

I reach behind me intent on tugging at Akio but he's gone from my side. My brow furrows and when I spot him, I get why I felt so uneasy. He's walked off, his silver eyes having this dazed over look to them as he stares off into the waters, trying to find the source of sound that he hears too.

By now it's a little more audible and it's now that I realize I'm not the only one who can hear it. _Strange_. Spike suddenly starts barking and spooks me out of my stupor. He calls my attention to the helm where Marina gives me a confused look before nearing the parapet to lean over. Running there, I do the same asking what in the world that is that we see scurrying through the water. I get my answer soon enough when I peek over along with her. Beneath the Chimera in the water I can see something moving. Slithering. Almost like a snake in water. But these things—whatever the hell they are—are transparent. Like some kind of amorphous liquid.

"...water?"

"Sirens."

Wait. What?

" _Master, the sirens."_

"...the tears—"

Out of the blue, the ship hits one of the rocks below and violently jerks forward before rushing into the rapids ahead. It does it so abruptly that I'm thrown down the stairs and tumble onto the deck. My head rattles and I don't find any spare moment to ask anything to Marina. She's busy trying to snap Sinbad out of whatever daze he's in. But he won't budge. I really don't like the look on his face. And it's not only him either. The whole damn crew's entranced with those banshees' chanting. And when I spot who else is, I can't help but groan and pull down at my face with my hand at the creepy smile on Akio's face. It doesn't make it any better that he's leaning a little too far forward overboard clearly trying to get closer to those freaky sirens.

 _Right when I freaking need you most._

The spare glance I give Aury gives me a little relief. Thankfully he's alright and unfazed by those things. But I doubt he'll be much help; not unless he knows how to navigate a damn ship through these narrows stretches of rapids.

The ship suddenly veers again, this time it doesn't seem to have hit anything though. Something veered its course away from the rocks we were heading towards.

"Ayano!" I turn at Marina's call and at once realize what turned us away.

 _She knows how to sail!_

Before I can shout my gratitude, a wave of those things crashes onto the deck sweeping off all the men like sandcastles against ocean waves. It almost sweeps me off my feet too but I manage to somehow stumble my way to the mast nearby and grab ahold. As soon as I'm steady though my attention goes back to the sirens that taunt us and seduce them by jumping in and out of the waters.

Their tears...

 _How the hell am I supposed to get a tear out of that!?_

" _Their water, master,"_ Rinto reminds me. _"Any tears become a part of them and fills the oceans."_

"Should've told me sooner."

Rifling through my bag fast, I snatch one of the potions still inside. Uncorking it with my teeth, I let the expired potion empty out as I run towards the far off end of the deck where the Sirens are gathering. Just when I'm about to reach them, I hear Marina shout out something that I can't quite make out. It's not until I see Spike rounding and coraling the men with the rope in his mouth that I leap out of the way before he can tighten that loop closed. Regrettably, he doesn't catch everybody.

"Aurelius!" His head perks up at my call as I stretch out my arm for him to jump down. "Coral them!"

He doesn't hesitate. Aury jumps off and transforms into a Me Me Bunny with some difficulty. When he manages to, his long ears wrap around the few crew members that got away to keep them together and out of those waters.

I'm about to go get those tears when I hear Marina yell out Rat's name. A gasp escapes me and a chill runs down my spine when I see him fall into the waters below. Marina and I both spot the hooked rope and immediately have the same thought. Being the closest I spin on my heels to snatch it and toss it her way. She's agile enough to haul Sinbad onto the wheel to keep it steady quick enough to catch the hook and rope. She's fearless, I'll give her that. Without hesitating, she fishes Rat out and lifts him up overheard.

As I follow Rat's trajectory, I spot another one that gets on the deck and goes for Akio who somehow got away from Aury's grasp. It's not just one though. More start coming his way and those red eyes of there's don't seat well with me. But with me being too far to get to him in time before he dives into the water, I call on Rinto.

 _C'mon, tell me you can do this!_

The sudden paleness on his face tells me she can. My eyes somehow manage to change their appearance. But Akio, in his dumbed down daze, backtracks further towards the edge of the deck. Exactly where I don't want him to go. I'm intent on getting to him before he falls over but when the ship deeps down with force it throws me down onto the floor. Thankfully, he falls too. I can breathe a little with that.

The ruckus that reaches my ears though doesn't sit well with me, and when I raise my gaze, it's clear why. Those damn rapids are converging upwards into a rising waterfall.

 _If we crash into them we're done for._

Marina, who I imagine fell down onto the deck like me, realizes this too and we both book it to the helm. Scanning for a way out, I spot the clearing just off to the side of the rising waterfall and point to it.

"Through there!"

With a brief glance, Marina shouts at Spike instantly, "Spike, the blades!"

As Spike dashes off and she veers the ship off, I catch a glance of the sirens. At this rate, she'll crash right into them. And damn Akio's still heading towards them.

 _How the hell do you keep getting out!?_

The thought is brief when an idea comes to mind instead. It's crazy but it can work. Grabbing the bottle tightly in my hand, I follow after Spike and jump over him, propelling myself further ahead by stepping on the baldes' handle and jamming it in place. With that, the blades hold as they ravage through the wreckage of ships. Using that moment, I land right on Akio's back and push him face first onto the ground just as the Chimera crashes onto the sirens. Strange blobs of water scatter into the air above us upon impact and catch my eye. They're solid enough to catch in my hand but the moment I do, they start liquefying quickly. In my panic, I hurriedly shove what I can into the bottle and cork it just as I lose my footing. I slip backwards and crash into someone, tumbling back with them and hitting the mast just as the ship shoots out of the Dragon's Teeth.

It's incredible the difference between the two places. Way calmer out here in the open sea. I thank goodness for that after the total mayhem we just went through. And the moment's all the sweeter when I lift the corked bottle up and watch the dense blue liquid slosh around in the crystal bottle.

The sudden groaning behind me makes me turn back to face Akio. He's rubbing at his neck and shoulders surely from how sore they are. And if the soreness I'm feeling right now is any sign of it, he's in a world of pain for sure.

"A-Aya?" All around us, the rest of the crew members are rousing from their daze. Looks like it all went away as soon as we got out of the Dragon's Teeth. _Good._ "What...what happened?"

A chuckle leaves me as I rest against him and he groans from the added weight. Apparently too tired to move still, he lets himself rest against the mast. The sound of a light squeal makes me lift my gaze to meet Aurelius and catch him as he jumps into my arms. He nuzzles against my chest briefly before turning back into a little winged ball. When he does, I notice the blue crystal on his wing spread further than before. It's now taking the upper half of his wing and because of it, he can't fold it close anymore. My hand wraps around it and he whimpers softly at my touch. Akio's hand comes close to mine to inspect the crystal and his tongue clicks close to my ear.

"It accelerated more than before."

"He transformed," I tell him. Scooting back, I place Aury between us and look up at him. "You think that's making it worse?"

"It could be. We should be careful about it and keep him from changing forms for now."

We rise from our seats with that consensus between us three but can't really rest. The rowdy crowd that's formed now that everyone's awake takes center stage and all of our attention. But it's really just two people duking it out: Sinbad and Marina. We can't really butt in. Not like they give us anytime to either. All we can do is watch along with everybody else until Marina shuts herself down in that room again, practically ending that argument.

But at turning away from her, it's clear that none of the crew members appreciate the way he treated her. Especially after she single-handedly navigated us through that wreck. But stubborn as he is, Sinbad won't go back and thank her properly. That doesn't sit with me at all.

 _And like hell am I gonna keep quiet about it._

"You're really stupid, you know."

Sinbad glares at me and everybody else just stares. I don't care one bit. He doesn't get to be a douche on my watch.

"I was wide awake unlike you bunch and let me tell you, I'm useless at navigating. Had it not been for Marina, your precious boat would've been wrecked. Not to mention you all would've been pretty much dead too." Stomping up to him, I reciprocate the glare but level it so that it's just the right amount of mean to get my point across.

"So how about you stick that dumb pride where the sun don't shine and thank her."

Sinbad doesn't budge. He walks right past me and up towards the helm. I'm almost certain he won't until I hear him groaning to himself and stomp his way back down with Spike hot on his heels.

They exchange a crude conversation but I suppose as long as he thanks her, it's some kind of start.

"I just had the epiphany that it's not that you don't know what could happen to you when you act." Akio holds onto his aching head for a moment as he looks between Sinbad's back and me. "You do know. You just don't care."

I pout at his crude explanation. "I do care. Sometimes."

"Rare times, I imagine."

"Cared enough to save your lusting butt from those sirens, didn't I?"

All at once, he turns redder than I've ever seen him before. So much so that even I feel it on my cheeks with the golden bracelet gleaming on my wrist.

"W-W-What?!"

His nervousness makes me chuckle but I set it aside to show him the bottle with sloshing blue liquid instead. His little breakdown stops briefly when he spots it _,_ mercurial eyes narrowing curiously.

"What's that?"

"Just the tears of a couple sirens you left so heartbroken."

He doesn't mind my teasing. This time his mind is much more preoccupied with what I'm showing him. Almost like the gears of his mind are turning and thinking about what he'll do with it once he has everything he needs.

 _One down. Two to go._

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **A little shorter than usual but I didn't want to rush into the next part and leave it on some awkward cliffhanger. I've got half of the next chapter already written down but I have things to do before I can get down to writing. As for next time, there'll be lots of heart-warming moments and then I hope to wrench your hearts straight outta your chests Aztec-style. But you know, just my wishful thinking :3**

 **To finish this off, I'd like to thank** _Shiranai Atsune_ **and** _CharlieFreemantheJumpmerch_ **for the follows and favorites on this story :) And also to** _Antex_ **for keeping it strong with all these reviews! Hope your enjoying the story, friend!**

 **And that'll be all for today :D I hope you enjoyed this update and that you all stay tuned for the next chapter!**

 **-** _Evie_


	17. Memoir XVII: For Your Protection

**Memoir XVII:**

 _For Your Protection_

* * *

What a weird looking island.

"Alright, listen up!"

Jumping in my skin, my hand shoots to my chest to keep my heart from bursting out at Kayle's sudden shout. It'd been loud enough for everybody on deck to hear. But with me being right there beside him, it almost burst my damn eardrum too. Geez, man. I'm right here. No need to shout. He's brief with his words, but with them being just as loud, I cover my ears to keep them safe from harm. Even through that, though, I still hear him loud and clear.

"We're here for ten minutes. You get lost, you get left."

 _Great to know._ Verifying that he's done takes but a second. Once I know he won't yell my ears off, I make my way onto the deck. Just as I get to the stairs landing, Akio walks past me following the rest of the crew as they leave with a bucket in hand. At spotting me, he turns his gaze fully on me and raises an eyebrow.

"Are you staying onboard?"

My head shakes as my answer, Aury shaking alongside me for emphasis. "I'm gonna go see if I can find something edible here." At the stark reminder of what we've been fed for the past few days, the bile threatens to raise. "If I have to eat anymore eggs or pickles, I'm painting this deck with throw up."

"Charming." He chuckles when I blow him a raspberry as a reply, a smile forming on his lips as he swings the bucket over his shoulder. "Don't get in too much trouble."

"Yessir!" Giving him a salute with a couple of my fingers, we part ways as he takes the ramp down and I simply jump overboard, landing on the crass ground beneath. Strangely enough, I bounce a little. It only takes me a few jumps to realize how squishy the soil here is.

 _Odd._

Forgetting about it for now, I holler at Kayle for him to toss me a bucket. With a smart quip, he throws a wooden one that I have no problem catching. Once I have it in hand, I head off to explore the island.

 _Ten minutes, ten minutes._

I keep repeating that in my head as I runoff opposite of where the rest of the crew went. With how feisty Sinbad and Marina were not long ago, I definitely don't want to be anywhere near them when that particular keg explodes. At remembering who did go with them, though, I can't help but let out a sympathetic sigh. Poor Akio. For how bright he is with a lot of things, he's really dense when it comes to other people. The rumbling of my stomach reminds me why I'm here in the first place and gets me to ask for Rinto's help in searching the area.

" _Master, I've scanned your immediate surroundings and it appears that some vegetation is growing not far from you."_

"Which way, Rin?"

" _Northwest."_

I follow Rinto's directions and find myself in someplace akin to an orchard. The trees are low, their trunks engorged, and their leaves a very sickly purple color, but what I care about more than that are the fruits hanging from their branches. Licking my lips at the sight, I trot to the closest one, easily climbing up to sit at the treetop. From here all I have to do is reach out towards the branches and pluck away at the fruit. A couple come off easily from the branches with a tug or two. I fumble with them for a bit and toss one into the bucket and keep the other in hand. Turning it every which way, I don't find anything wrong with it. It's not until Rinto agrees that there's a high likelihood that it's safe that I give one a bite. A groan leaves me at the sweet taste that coats my mouth almost instantly.

 _Now this is food._

Just as I'm to take another bite, my eyes catch something strange with the fruit. My bite cut it in half and the flesh inside bears a distinct shape that is hard to miss. Raising it to look at it better, I purse my lips and narrow my eyes.

"Rin, is that…?"

" _...a star."_

Star apples—kind of. Looking over my shoulder at the rest of the makeshift orchard makes my mind race with the possibility of what this could mean. I toss the rest of the fruit at Aury, said Spirit gulping it down and licking at his lips at the morsel, as I race to pick as many as I'm able to. It's easy to go from tree to tree. Frankly, it's only the picking that takes some time, but even then it goes by quickly with Aury's help. And that's good news on my book. Because if this little fruit is indeed that star apple Akio mentioned before, then we struck gold on this island.

I'm struggling to figure out how to sort the last couple of apples in my already full-to-the-brim bucket when a gut feeling strikes me. It's sudden and mild, but heeding it turns me around towards the orchard behind me. And that gut feeling turns out to be right on the dime. Just as I turn, a hoard of Nightmares pops out of portals and start plundering the whole orchard without warning, destroying every fruit and tree in their path. Clicking my tongue, I'm fast on my feet to leap away and give myself some distance. Sensing the disturbance as well, Aurelius uncurls from my neck. An idea comes to me when I see him able to still fly and I lift the bucket his way.

"Take this and head back to the ship." Aury fervently shakes his head obviously against leaving me behind. "Aurelius!" He stiffens at my stern tone before wrapping his tail around the bucket's handle, one of his wings working more than the other to keep both himself and it afloat. "Get there as quick as you can. I'll catch up once I'm done here."

He gives me one last look before shooting off in the ship's direction. He's slow, at least slower than he usually would be. That immediately brings my attention to the crystal that's enveloping his wing. Those petrifying crystals are burdening him more than I thought. But that's why we have to be certain to make those fruits our top priority.

 _Besides, I can deal with a bunch of snails._

Ares in hand, I extend it in a split second, managing to dodge in time as one rolls my way in its shell. Escarglow are small and weak from what I remember, but they can be a problem in large numbers. As I start fighting them off, I realize how much that latter thought begins to matter more and more. Somehow the more I keep popping out of existence, the more they keep reappearing. Almost like two come out for each one I vanish. A groan leaves me when I understand that, with them doing this and multiplying indefinitely, fighting them alone really isn't smart.

" _Flee, master."_

"I have to buy time for him to get away."

But the moment I strike the end of Ares to bring out the spear, the floor beneath me shakes out of the blue. An earthquake? That's my first thought. Or at least it would have been if weren't for the large luminous sphere that swings around from above, coinciding with every quake beneath my feet. That lantern-like thing is almost as bright as the sun and I block my eyes away from it anytime it swings back my way. The Nightmares, scared by the sudden shaking and the light sphere itself, quake themselves. Seeing this, I take my chance to attack I dash towards them, though, all the flora around us suddenly sinks into the ground leaving all of it bare..

 _They sunk?!_

" _Looks like they...retracted."_

I don't like the sound of that.

The floor beneath me moves again, this time much more brusquely, and it throws me off of my feet, making Ares skid out of my grasp from my fall. The Escarglow that I was fighting disappear, but in their place, Fishbonés appear. And it's just my luck that they don't care much about the island that's suddenly moving underneath them. Not with them being able to float several inches off of the floor to ignore it.

"Damn."

The island doesn't seem to be stopping anytime sono. It actually seems to be moving more as it begins moving side to side. Realizing I can't fight like this, I snatch Ares from off the ground before I lose it and book it towards the ship. But those damn fish aren't going to let me leave so easily. Lasers shoot over my shoulders as I make my escape, and I keep having to spare glances behind me to have any chance at avoiding them. Finally, I spot the boat, and all at once relief washes over me. The splash of a giant fin, though, changes that pretty quickly as it shoves it further away.

 _Wait. A fin?_

"This thing's a fish!?"

"Aya!" With all the noise going on around, I barely make out Akio's voice in the distance.

He's already on board from what I can see but Sinbad, Marina, and the rest of the crew seem to be racing the giant fish to the ship before it can fully separate us from it. When another laser reminds me of the Nightmares chasing after me, I speed up and dodge the ones following it. They miss me but hit one of the sails instead. Gasping, I suddenly understand something. If I run and avoid them, they'll attack the ship. And I can't let that happen.

Skidding to a stop and pivoting with Ares at the ready, flames spew lightly from the end I'm aiming at the Fishbonés with. It shocks them, my sudden stop, and the momentum they have can't be stopped so easily. Not when you don't have your feet planted firmly on the ground. But instead of letting that discourage them from the attack, they take the chance. Bright spheres starts gathering in their unhinged jaws as they charge their beams to strike. A sporadic idea hits me at noticing their focus on me. Entirely on me. And if I can get them to flinch, it'll be my advantage.

 _Time to play chicken._

The burn in my eyes is more intense now than before in my attempt to deceive all the Nightmares in one fell swoop. I think in my mind the kind of ominous illusion to conjure to make them falter. It takes me a second but when I see their beams flinch, a smirk splits my face and I cast the spell.

"Firaga!" Flames erupt from Ares and blow the Nightmares to smithereens in one hit.

With them gone, I whirl, ready to vault my way onto the ship, when a pain strikes me. It's so abrupt that it draws me to my knees gasping for air that doesn't reach my lungs. It burns—my whole body feels like it's been set ablaze from the inside and the flames licking every inch of my skin. Enthralled in my pain, I don't notice when the bright light of the fish's lantern is blocked by tendrils of black shooting from everywhere around me. Like a flower, blooming, it eats me whole and drowns me darkness. It's her to breathe in here. The flames eating me from inside burn on. I don't feel myself breathing anymore.

My whole body just—

 _...hurts._

It's then that light breaks through that darkness all at once. Tender hands wrap around me then. Hands that, even though I can't even see them, feel warmer than the light itself. I don't know who it is. I can't even hear them. But even with the light dispelling the darkness, the pain won't stop. I'm screaming—I must be. My throat burns so much.

Those hands whisk me away, holding me tightly as they do, and the unstable floor beneath me changes to one that gently sways back and forth. But I can't pay it any mind. Not when I can't get a hold of my own body. Nothing goes through this pain: not noise or any sight. All I can hear is my own voice going hoarse from my screams. All I feel is an intense heat, like scorching fingers tracing themselves across my skin and marking my body, my face, my eyes. And all I see is darkness as those black tendrils start closing in on me again wanting to swallow me whole once more.

That light from before becomes brighter than before. Suddenly the warmth I felt so faraway settles on my heart. It almost feels like someone's cradling me. The light swallows me instead, clearing my sight, and my body, from those black tendrils. With them gone, the pain starts to recede. And with my vision clear, it takes a moment for me to refocus it from the blur. Once it does, all I see is silver. No, not silver.

Mercury.

"...it's okay. You're alright now." His breath hitches and I feel the embrace from before tighten. "...you're going to be okay."

 _Akio...you sound so weird when you cry._

That's the last thought I have before the light brightens and everything goes white.

* * *

"How is she?"

Akio flinched at hearing Marina's voice so close so suddenly. The doors didn't even make a sound. No, perhaps they had. Maybe he was just that out of it. Certainly felt like it. His stomach turned, not because of the rough ride they had endured for more than twelve hours but because of what he couldn't take his eyes away from.

Ayano laid on the bed completely unconscious for just as long. Though she didn't look to be in pain anymore, it still concerned Akio that those marks hadn't faded. What looked to be black scars extended from her upper body and ran along her arms and down hands, covering them mostly in black tendrils of ink. By the looks of things, it wasn't anything new either. It couldn't be from how extensive it became. And now, after what happened, it spread further. It crawled up her neck and onto the right side of her face, the tendrils stopping just short of reaching her right eye.

And seeing her marred skinned turned his stomach.

"She still hasn't woken up," Akio said, not taking his eyes off of her and leaning forward, his chair screeching as he scooted closer to the bed's edge. Aury lifted his head slightly from where he laid beside Ayano at the sound but went back to nuzzling her side when realizing it was only Marina. Akio didn't feel the same relief. He didn't want to talk to anybody at the moment. But he forced himself to with how Marina seemed genuinely concerned for Aya's wellbeing. "But she doesn't seem to be in anymore pain."

"That's good." Silence came over them but Akio knew it wouldn't last long. Marina was just as curious about what caused this as he was, and she was worse at hiding it than him. "Do you know what happened? What caused this?"

"I have some idea but it could be entirely wrong for all I know. Regardless of what it is, it's been happening for a while from the looks of it. And it's not done."

"But what you did—"

"Slowed it down." Akio took Ayano's hand in his, his eyes locked on the dark swirls tainting her fingers. Aurelius moved closer, nudging at her hand for her to move but getting no response. "Whatever this is, I can't stop it."

The quiet came back and this time seemed to prolong its stay. Marina's hand suddenly rested on his shoulder and he only gave it a small glance as she squeezed it in reassurance.

"There'll be a way to cure her too." He wasn't in the mood to argue with her. So he didn't. Marina's lips became a taut line, trying to reassuring him of something he wasn't all too convinced about.

"You'll see, we'll find a way." Marina released him and started heading back onto deck. Stepping onto the base of the stairs, she stopped briefly before glancing over her shoulder. "We'll be reaching the Granite Gates shortly. It shouldn't be much trouble to pass through them. From there, it should be smooth sailing to Tartarus."

"Let's hope it is."

With that, Marina left Akio alone with the Spirit and Ayano. His eyes never strayed from her hand as he held it. Not until he saw her fingers twitch before curling around his own. Wide eyed, he lifted his gaze to find Ayano slowly rousing, groaning as she shuffled before trying to sit up. Hurrying to her side, Akio helped her up, muttering to take it easy and to be careful.

Blue-green hazel eyes blinked a couple of times until they focused on his, a weak smile coming to her lips at recognizing him.

"...hey."

"Hey," he whispered back, still holding onto her hand with one of his and supporting her back with the other. "How do you feel?"

Her brow knitted together, puzzled at first, then widened a little as if slowly taking recalling what happened. "I guess I'm okay. It doesn't hurt anymore. My body feels sore though."

"It's normal after the backlash you endured."

"Backlash?"

This time, Akio's brow furrowed at her confusion. "From darkness. It's latched onto you and it's draining your life. It's spread so much too. How could you not have known?"

She pondered his words for a second, seemingly left dazed after the episode she had. It took her a moment to snap out of it, and once she did, Ayano didn't look puzzled anymore. In fact, Akio could very well describe her expression with one word: resignation.

"You knew."

Ayano focused on her hand, tracing the dark marks that strangled it now with the other. The mirror standing far ahead of the room caught her eye and her fingers reached up to do the same on the marks running up the side of her face. Not fearfully or skeptically. Only with a morbid sigh of compliance.

"It started a year ago, I think."

"That's impossible. If you've had this for a year then you should be—"

"Dead." There wasn't any hesitation in her voice. Almost like she already had more than enough time to process something as awful as her vanishing completely. "I spent the latter half of last year with someone who kept me balanced and whole. Because of him, I didn't vanish outright like I should have." She turned back to him, eyes half lidded and hand still touching the marks on her face.

"Was it bad?"

"It could've done far worse," he admitted.

Ayano's brow furrowed once more at his words. "Why didn't it?"

With pursed lips and a deep breath, he lifted his hand to touch his bare, exposed collarbone. Bare. Quiet understanding washed over her as she slowly lifted her own hand to mimic the gesture. Unlike him, something rested on her bosom. And she knew exactly what it was when she lifted it to see.

"Your necklace?"

The crystal gave off a glimmer in the faint candlelight, and although opaque in the light it was stunning all the same. She hadn't really seen it up close before when he first showed it to her but now she could appreciate the little details engraved on the smooth crystal. Whoever made it did so with a meticulous hand. Certainly showed the kind of care they had when making it.

"It's something I made to help me." Akio reached to her and took the necklace in his hand, the long leather cord letting him bring it a little away from her chest. "I've got a certain weakness to darkness too and this helps me keep it at bay. I can control it and use it because of this." Gently, he passed it back for her to take it in her hand again.

"That sort of backlash is something I've gone through too. So I thought it'd be able to help you as well."

"But—" Her grip tightened around the necklace despite its sharp edges. "Won't that hurt you, not having it?"

"Not if I'm close to you."

She didn't believe him. That much was obvious by the sour expression on her face. But he only let out a light scoff and small grin as a response.

"Trust me for once."

Ayano took a deep breath, her mind clearly thinking over what he was asking of her. Before long, though, she reciprocated the smile. "Alright."

The sudden stop the Chimera took made them jump. Taken aback but unable to move all that well yet, Akio climbed onto the bed to hold her close in case the need to protect her came. But when nothing else happened after the abrupt stop, the two shared a perplexed look before Akio jumped off and dashed up to the deck.

Beside her, Ayano noticed the gelid white tint that covered the window by her bedside. Careful not to touch it, she wiped at the glass with her sleeve and looked out. Hazel eyes widened at the sight of white outside.

"The sea...froze over."

* * *

Akio adjusted the gloves he borrowed on his hands, flexing his fingers to make sure they fit well enough for the job they needed to do. As absurd as the idea was, that the sea had suddenly frozen over didn't seem to faze Sinbad and his crew. They grumbled about the extra work Sinbad put them to do, breaking the ice and all, but it was a necessary task and they knew it. Moving forward was took precedence to any complaints.

And to get that process going smoother, Akio decided to join them. Surely with his powers, he'd be able to—

 _No, I can't._

One of his hands curled into a fist at recalling such a crucial detail. He didn't have his necklace on himself anymore. And he could imagine the kind of rebound using the darkness that leeched off of him without it would cause.

"...Guess old school it is."

But as his fingers grabbed the handle of a spare pickaxe, a familiar pair of shoes came into his field of vision. Akio already knew who he'd find standing before him but still took her in as he came to meet Ayano's determined, hazel gaze.

"I'm helping too." A shortened Ares rested in her palm, her arms crossed indignantly over her chest.

"Like hell you are."

"But my fire magic can—"

"I don't care what it can or can't do. Aya, you just got hit by a heavy dark rebound. You're body hasn't had enough time to recover yet."

"You're necklace is helping." Her argument fell on deaf ears as Akio shook his head and started to head off the ship. She fell in stride behind him, her brow wrinkled into a annoyed frown. "I'm feeling better now."

"You can't be sure of that."

"But I am fine—"

"Ayano." Akio spun on his heels in time to stop Ayano just a few feet away from him. Quicker than she could counter, he grabbed the hand with which she held Ares in and roughly held it. "Listen to me. You're not well yet, no matter how you may feel. The disbalance you have is far greater than I've ever seen on anybody. I have no idea how much my necklace can even protect you from. For all we know, you could feel just fine one moment and collapse the next. I don't want to have to worry about you out there."

"You won't."

Akio shook his head, his lips turning to a tight-lipped scowl. "So long as you're out there in your condition, I will. Aya, please. I asked you to trust me. You said you would. So trust me to take care of things for now."

Ayano pursed her lips, clearly upset about stepping into the sidelines. Their eyes locked for a moment until Ayano's went askance, cheeks reddened from repressed fury.

"Just until I get better."

"Just until you get better," he repeated.

"Fine," she huffed. With a swift move, she holstered Ares and crossed her arms again to shield from the cold. "But you be careful out there too."

He nodded. With that, she blew him one final raspberry and spun on her heels to catch up to Marina who was heading below deck for warmer attire. Akio watched her leave and the moment he saw the door close behind her, he felt the slithering of tendrils as they crawled and curled around his hand and fingers. The wisps coyly spun around his hand, not fully attaching themselves to it but not leaving either. Almost like they could sense his necklace's absence. As if knowing how vulnerable he was now without it.

Ignoring it for now was the best thing to do. He wouldn't take that necklace away from her now. Not when he was almost certain that if he did, whatever darkness tried attacking her would certainly get the job done if allowed the chance again.

* * *

 _This is taking too long._

" _They are working as fast as humanly possible."_

"I'd be able to melt the ice if Akio let me."

" _Perhaps. But I agree with him. You mustn't rush back into danger after what happened."_

Hearing that again, I ask Rinto to do a full scan of my body. I suppose it's something to do since I'm here just hanging out at the end of the deck doing nothing other than watching the others pick ice. Silence spreads for a moment as Rinto goes to work. The serpent tattoo that usually sits atop my heart slithers through my skin and takes the time it needs to make a complete examination. I don't know how long it's been since my last check-up at the Mysterious Tower, but no matter how long, that it's started to move and so violently at that surely isn't a good sign.

And when the snake slithers back into place in relative silence, my fear grows. Not even rubbing the subtle warmth it left behind does anything to calm me.

"Well?"

" _There's been...progress."_

Oh, yeah. That doesn't sound good at all.

My hand crumples the clothes I hold in my hand. "How bad is it?"

She remains quiet for another moment as if to collect her thoughts before saying something that completely floors me.

" _I implore you to not remove the necklace. No matter what happens from now on."_

All at once my breath hitches and my heard stops in its tracks. For once, I can feel the cold dread that I've been trying to ignore all this time. The one that I've been pushing to the back of my mind anytime Haruka and I had the check-ups. Anytime that the darkness continued to encroach me, I just didn't let myself think about the notion of what's happening to me.

 _I'm dying._

Rinto doesn't agree with me, but she doesn't dismiss my conclusion either. That dread brings me to grab the necklace that rests just above my bosom and hold it up to see. This little thing is keeping me alive.

This necklace. His—

"What about him?"

" _What do you mean?"_

"He can't control his powers without this. If I keep it, what'll happen to him? Won't it hurt him like it hurts me?"

" _According to the limited information he gave us, perhaps not as severely."_

But it will. _I don't want that._

The worries and speculations suddenly come to a screeching halt when an echoing high-pitched caw fills the air. All at once my head shoots up trying to find the source but it doesn't sound to be anywhere nearby. That's beside the point that it looks like I'm the only one that heard it. All the same, I get up from my perch and stand at the end of the ship to get a better listen. Just then, Spike starts barking and I have a feeling that he hears it too.

The cawing comes back then, a louder echo this time, and in the distance something flies across leaving in its wake a gentle snowfall. Another, much louder screech sounds off as it disappears behind part of the gates. It was closer. Way too close for comfort.

Suddenly, Spike's barking stops—he whines and then backs off. Like he's sensing _something_.

I have my back turned to the outside to peek at the puzzled faces of Sinbad and Marina and am about to ask what that was when something explodes behind me. Whirling about, I barely catch sight of the giant white bird that dives towards the ship. It's aim straight at me as it comes with its beak wide open. Instantly, I step back and drop to avoid it's snapping beak, grabbing onto the ship's bowstrip in time to not fall off. But as I struggle to pull myself up, I can see the bird circle the ship with falling snow in its wake.

Panic breaks out instantly.

"Everyone, back on the ship!"

My eyes stray from each pirate that dashes back towards the vessel, making sure they board safely as I do. But my concern lies with one person in particular.

 _Where are you?_

I spot Akio almost instantly as he falls behind with some of the pirates to hurry them towards safety. Realizing they have no way to get up fast on their side, I jump off the bowstrip and closer to them with Ares in hand. Pushing the weapon through an opening, I extend it as far as it'll go, creating a makeshift rope up. Luckily when the first one gets to it, Ares doesn't collapse; it's lodged well enough between the opening of the parapet to hold. Pulling each and everyone onboard isn't hard but my reeled mind doesn't slow down until Akio takes my hand and I haul him onboard alongside me.

He doesn't even get to let out a ragged 'thank you' when Sinbad bellows out into the open.

"Marina!"

My blood runs cold the moment I see the bird grasp Marina in his talons. Sinbad rushes to her, intent on saving her, but I can see from here that he won't reach. Not in time. No one can.

 _That's not true._

"Ayano!"

" _Master, don't!"_

I'm gone before either of them can stop me. Vaulting over the bow of the ship, I reach further than they can and clutch onto the bird's empty claws. It reacts and closes them shut, shooting pain across my arm as it tightly tries to shake me off. Shrinking Ares, I weave it through its claw and extend it to get a better hold as it jolts back and forth. Something falls from my shoulder but the moment I look down to see what it was, everything in me simply stops. My body freezes as does the blood in my veins. It crawls to a stop, my heart no longer seeming to pump it the smaller and smaller I see the ship become.

 _High._

" _Don't let go, master!"_

"Like hell I will!"

I latch onto Ares and that claw as tight as I can as it raises higher and higher. What feels like a lifetime of flying ends quickly enough in a split second when it opens its claw. Instantly, I fall on the snowy ground below which thankfully is soft enough to break my fall. The grunting I hear beside me takes my full attention as Marina and I exchange a panicked look the moment the bird screeches. Hauling her up, we dash through the snow as fast as we can but we can't outrun something that big out in this open space. It uses its talons to stomp down on us and catches Marina in the makeshift cage it makes with a sharp claw. And no matter how much I pull or how hard she tries getting out, she can't break free.

 _We need to distract it._

The moment the sleeve of her coat slips out of my grasp, an idea hits me.

"Marina, your coat!"

She's quick to catch on and sheds the coat a second before the bird strikes down with its beak. We avoid it when it gnaws at the coat and flee at the first chance we get. Stumbling through snow, we rush towards a iced enclosure that hides us from view. We both risk a peek over corners and openings but duck when it turns in our general direction.

"How...how high up do you think we are?" My voice is trembling slightly. If from the sudden cold that's crawling on my back or the mere thought of high we might be, I have no clue.

"High enough that climbing down isn't an option."

"...thought you'd say that."

"Ayano." Hearing her call me, I turn to see her glancing over edge of the enclosure we're hiding behind. "Do you see what's falling off from the bird?"

My brow furrows from how confused I am about what she's saying. I take a peek against my common sense and watch as the oversized chicken walks away searching for us. It's back to us, I can see what she means as white falls from off its back.

"What, the snow?"

"It's not snow."

Narrowing my eyes to take a closer look, I can see something falling with the snow that covers it. No, not with the snow. It _is_ the snow.

"What are those?"

"Feathers."

The instant she says this and I turn to her, the same word slips from both our lips in unison.

"Feathers of a snow bird."

* * *

"I'm going with you."

"No."

Akio groaned, exasperated with Sinbad's stubbornness. No matter how much he followed after the captain, he wouldn't concede. And apparently it was exactly why he thought he didn't want to.

"Why?"

Sinbad picked up daggers as he went around the ship, calling out orders between talking to him. "You'll get in the way."

"You think I'm going to follow you around to save Marina? I'm going there to get Ayano."

"Which is exactly why you'll get in my way—Rat, don't let the blocks freeze!" Swiftly, Sinbad tied rope around his feet to secure the daggers in place. Akio huffed at being effectively shut down from the conversation and stood back alongside the rest of the crew as their captain turned to Kayle.

"And Kayle."

"Aye."

The dumb grin on his face only added to his goofy question. "Give me a hug?"

"E-Excuse me?"

Gaze narrowed, he watched Sinbad grab the daggers sheathed behind Kayle's back ad snatch them from his second mate. With that done, he hurried to take a round shield on his back before heading to the giant, mounted harpoon gun that rose as he kicked open the hatch. Aiming it with ease, he kept his eyes on the highpoint of the mountain before whistling out. Spike instantly bounded over to the latch wound taut around a bone and pulled. The harpoon shot straight out into the mountain and he leapt off to catch it midway to take the ride with it.

Watching from afar with the rest, he lands near the top end of the mountain before starting his climb. Akio grinded his teeth at that. Staying behind irked him. If he had his necklace he knew it'd be far easier to make his way up that snow mountain leap by leap. But without it, using the darkness held a much higher risk.

" _Our family has always been vulnerable to it,"_ he remembered his mother saying. A vague memory that had no fixed place in his young mind but that was there all the same. _"Some more than others. But it's manageable if we care to learn how to work in tandem with it."_

His mother never taught him that darkness was bad. Just different—like them. And he'd grown learning of it in such a way. But exactly because he understood that, he knew what harm it could do unimpeded.

And despite knowing that, his tapping feet and growing worries urged him to move—to act—because she'd done exactly what she always did. She got herself in trouble. And in doing so did exactly what she said she wouldn't.

 _What did I say about not worrying me?_

The loud and intermittent thumping that suddenly shook the ship almost dropped them to their feet. Apprehension held him for a split moment until he realized that Aurelius was the cause. Mercurial eyes went wide as the Spirit struggled on the floor, shapeshifting sporadically as he tried forcing himself to fully change. The crew stepped back in fear of what it's irate hissings meant but Akio knew just by the sound of it what had him so desperate to change.

He wanted to go after her too.

Knowing how bad of an idea that was in his condition, Akio started making his way over when the golden morpheus ball changed completely, spreading its massive wings as it became an Eaglider and taking most of the space on deck. No warning given and more than half its wing petrified a dark midnight blue, Aurelius swept through the crowd and ship rushing straight for him. There wasn't any stopping him. Not even Akio's urgent cries for him to stop did anything. The golden Spirit dashed through the deck sweeping Akio onto his back and once somewhat strapped on, ran at full speed onto the bowstring of the ship and leapt. Akio struggled to hold on but managed to somehow the moment Aurelius took off, flapping its wings violently, crystallized or not, to reach as far north as he could. Once off the ground, Akio didn't care about returning to the ship anymore. With them so high up in the sky and closer to where the bird took Ayano, nothing much did.

But just as they were reaching the summit he lost control. Akio felt the form beneath him give way much too suddenly as the Eaglider disappeared and Aurelius returned to his normal size. Acting fast, Akio yanked his tail and wrapped it around his wrist moments before he clashed face first against the snow-covered mountainside. His fingers desperately grasped trying to find something to hold onto but the snow crumbled under his hands moments before he fell backward. The air rushed past him, freezing his whole body on the way down, but in the split second nothing felt colder than the thought of not reaching that summit. Of not finding that bird.

Of not finding heralive.

Teeth grinding, he let out a roaring shout as the tendrils of darkness crawling against his skin responded to his call. Faster than he could blink or even think, it rushed like the blood in his veins to cover his arms and legs. The distribution, uncontrolled, took a massive beastly shape and clutched to his skin like a starving mongrel sinking its teeth. It hurt immensely but it was forgettable with the taste of blood as he bit down on his lip. Stretching the claws that wrapped around his arms out, they sprung upward and latched onto the side of the mountain. Like a wound spring, he reached a low point before propelling upward. His black claws retracted as he flew past that point and latched back on at the peak of his jump. He remained still for a second to let the pain wracking his body settle into numbness before he sunk his talons onto the mountain.

 _Quickest way there is up._

"Hold on, Aury." Aurelius shook out of his own stupor before wrapping his tail around Akio's neck and prepping for the launch.

Haunching back on his hind legs, Akio pushed himself skyward by leaps and bounds, desperation crystal clear with each jump. It took mere minutes for the mountainside to end and for one final leap to bring him over the mountain with only a clearing of white beneath him. Mercury scanned the area as he began to a fall. But he scowled at seeing nothing but white.

And the giant snow bird prowling—searching. Just then its head snapped behind it and at following its line of sight, he saw something. Someone.

 _There you are._

Moments after landing on the white coated floor, a hissing rang through the summit bringing his attention to the far side where a familiar crystallized form stood tall, loaded pistols at the ready in both its clawed-hands. A fiery explosion brought both their attentions to Ayano where she set off Firaga directly at the snow bird—away from Sinbad and Marina.

 _She's distracting it._

The _clicking_ of loaded pistols didn't bode well, the sound sinking deep into his brain as the worst case scenario ran through his head. It's intended target—the one it had aimed for back at the ship—getting shot. Dying. Disappearing Anger boiled through his veins at the thought and propelled him forward. A few leaps was all it took before he clutched onto the bird's torso with his dark claw to toss him aside. A deafening screech erupted from it at crashing against the ground, its wings flailing every which way as it rushed to get up. Once it did, it cawed at him as he landed but whirled about intent on pursuing the pair that had just jumped off the cliff.

"Aki?!"

Loud footsteps crashed through the snow and he turned to face Ayano just as she reached him from midway across the summit. The closer she got, the warmer that familiar light emanating from his necklace around her neck became. And like a lit candle in the dead of night, Akio felt its light cleansing him and the darkness that almost engulfed his body whole disappearing. Like molted scales, they hardened and fell from his body, turning into black dust before vanishing into nothing.

Her brow furrowed as her hazel eyes examined every inch of his body as it returned to normal. Ayano rested her hand on his arm as his breathing turned ragged.

"What—"

 _Click._

Mercurial eyes widened for a split second before he threw himself at Ayano, shoving them both out of the bullet's trajectory. They avoided the remaining three shots as they hurried to the closest boulder that could properly shield them. Akio heard the casings fall as new ones replaced them and the barrel clicked back into place.

He peeked over the boulder just in time to see the dark portals open and the infected Nightmares file out before another bullet shot through. Ayano pulled him back to hide behind it, their eyes locking for a brief moment as another _click_ filled the air.

"They're too many to fight," she hissed. The two pressed against the boulder as the floor beneath them shook violently, cracks audibly opening across the summit.

"Yeah." He looked back briefly and then ahead at the end of the cliff from where the bird chased Sinbad and Marina off. Jumping was a viable option but without Aury, the chances they'd be able to clear a safe landing were close to null. But with the other form he took…

" _Don't ever use it for longer than you have to, sweetheart. If you do, there's a high likelihood it will cease its chance to fully take control of you. And you won't notice until it's too late."_

Despite hearing his mother's warning clear in his head, Akio paid more attention to what his instinct told him.

 _You don't need to be afraid. The darkness can't take ahold of you so long as your light is beside you. It's here, and it won't abandon you._

The mountain shook again and this time with a force so strong that it cracked the summit entirely. The floor crumbled beneath them and they struggled to remain standing.

Now he was more sure than ever that this was the only way out of this.

"The only way to go now is down."

Her face paled at the sound of that, hazel eyes—that hadn't even reacted to the crumbling tower beneath them—turning bright red at the menace that those words posed.

"...A-Akio?"

He didn't give her a warning so as to not scare her but that resulted quite counterproductive when fear clutched instantaneously after he grabbed her by the waist and forced her to jump off the cliff with him. The shots firing after them were whispers compared to the screeching yell that Ayano let out. Neither broke his concentration. With his necklace so close to him now it was harder to conjure it but he somehow managed to force the darkness to engulf his arms and legs like it had before. Unlike before though, it didn't gnaw at him. Instead all he felt was a secure grasp on his skin that kept the darkness on him. Like this, it was more than controllable.

 _I can handle this._

"Hold on!" Ayano didn't think twice and wrapped her arms around his neck before burying her face against his shoulder.

Clawing at the wall to slow their fall, his talons scraped the granite before breaking the walls completely as they began crashing along with them. With the falling debris free falling, he managed to make his way through the air and closing the gap between them and the ship. A ship still stuck in the frozen ocean. Thinking fast, he grabbed a hold of the last broken piece of stone with his talons before springing forward and launching it downward against the frozen water. The ice cape cracked louder than anything he ever heard and the other falling pieces of stone that followed after the tower collapsed only helped the process.

That dealt with, Akio focused on not getting them killed. With dexterity he didn't know he had, he diminished the darkness enveloping him to safely seize the tallest mast that Sinbad and Marina hadn't broken on their landing. He and Ayano landed and toppled onto the crow's nest there, limbs scrambling every which way.

Akio felt the air rush out of his lungs on impact along with the darkness that had hung onto him like a second skin. And though he thought to hear her whisper something, all he clearly heard from Ayano was her bubbly laughter as she rose from the floor with little effort.

"Scary as that was, I gotta say that it gave me a thrill." Ayano turned to him with a toothy grin, hand outstretched as Aurelius climbed onto her shoulder, elated that her master was back safe and sound. "Guess I owe you another one, huh?"

The words wrenched a part of him with both joy and regret, but he decided to forget about the latter and focus on the former instead. He didn't hesitate to take the hand she extended.

"This one's on me."

* * *

 **A/N:**

 **AHHH! I'M STILL ALIVE! Real sorry this has taken so long to update. I've been super busy and haven't had time for anything, much less writing. But with this one week I've had off, I at least wanted to post a new chapter. It's a little shorter than usual, so my bad about that. I actually planned on writing more (like actually finishing the arc in Sinbad's world) but then I was like well, that's a downer compared to this first half so I'll just separate the two. Spoiler for that, I guess :3**

 **Anyway, thank you to all who have patiently waited for an update! For now I hope that you all enjoyed it and hope to see you on the next update :)**


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